


rushing to death with open eyes

by My5tic_Lali



Category: Tales of Arcadia (Cartoons)
Genre: AU, Canon-Typical Violence, Found Family, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Jim/claire is background but there!, archie has the braincell confirmed, ben wyatt meme: it's about the Friendship, don't mind me i am just frantically re-shuffling the timeline to fit the most angst, i really wanted to hate merlin but he cares about his apprentice so i guess i will tolerate him, no beta we die like self-sacrificial ToA protags, we stan one (1) perfect goth wizard boy and his cat, wizards was perfect but i wanted it to be longer and have more angst, zoe's here for like one chapter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-04
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:14:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 27,786
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26671237
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/My5tic_Lali/pseuds/My5tic_Lali
Summary: “Look out!”  Merlin yelled, and the Guardians all ducked, but his apprentice was too slow.The knight sent a wave of yellow-tinged shards streaking through the air after them, several impacting the side of the ship and whistling past their heads, but Merlin saw Douxie flinch and crumple the last few feet onto the deck of the ship.“Hisirdoux!”Merlin felt something deep inside him freeze as he saw one of the knight’s shards embedded in his apprentice’s chest, glowing unnaturally red.///An AU where the Arcane Order and the Knight didn’t target Jim; they wanted a magic user, and tried for a living spellcaster instead of going to all the effort of resurrecting Morgana. (aka an AU whereDouxiehas the shard in his chest, not Jim)
Relationships: Hisirdoux "Douxie" Casperan & Archie (Tales of Arcadia), Hisirdoux "Douxie" Casperan & Merlin (Tales of Arcadia), Jim Lake Jr./Claire Nuñez
Comments: 39
Kudos: 178





	1. Chapter 1

Douxie had been a lot of things over the centuries. An apprentice, an outsider, a con-man, somehow _always_ a minimum wage worker. He’d long since resigned himself to that reality, and over the years had forced himself to cultivate a sort of grudging appreciation of hard work. Of what you could accomplish with your own two hands, of doing what needed to be done.

But ever since Merlin left, he’d made himself something else. Being an apprentice without a physical, present master was not exactly an experience he would wish on anyone else, but he did what he could. Archie helped him study any magical tome they could get their hands on, and quizzed him on weekends on long lists of spells and magical fauna around the world and under it. 

And after dark, Douxie did what he thought Merlin would want him to do in his stead: fight monsters.

Okay, so maybe Merlin wouldn’t phrase it like that. _It is our sacred duty, Hisirdoux, to maintain the balance between the magical and human world. We operate in the nebulous intersection of the worlds, helping both sides and holding back the dark forces wherever they may choose to appear_ —Douxie could almost hear his master berating him for making it all about excitement and monster hunting. Regardless, he was doing what Merlin would’ve wanted. Keeping people safe from the things that went bump in the night and weren’t the neighbor’s cat (or Archie, when he lost his spectacles).

It was undeniably his favorite thing. After a long day of underpaid labor at whatever new job in whatever new town he found himself in, he would crack his knuckles and get to his real work. And, he was pretty good at it, barring a couple stumbles here and there.

He was pretty used to Arcadia at this point, the town having established itself as one of the areas where the separation between magic and humans was thinner than most places, with its long history and the troll habitation nearby. Douxie had been here a while, and seen the tensions ramping up as more and more incidents brought the worlds closer and closer. Brought even _other_ , literal worlds closer, with the arrival of Aja and Krel. But that didn’t mean he didn’t still need to patrol, wasn’t still aware of the more regular nuisances.

This night was no different from the rest, even though it was his first shadow mephit kill.

Or, at least, it was no different from the rest until, when the night finally quieted after the shadow mephit faded into limbo, the streetlight over his and Archie’s head went out.

They both froze.

And then came a distant voice.

_"Hisirdoux…"_

And Douxie's heart leapt. "Merlin? Yes!" He vaulted out of the trunk bed and onto the street. "Finally, Arch! Our moment has arrived!"

From beneath his feet, the familiar green of his master's magic began to glow, and Douxie jumped back. "Hisirdoux." The magic increased in brightness, forming into a construct of his Master, still clad in the same arcane armor he'd worn 900 years ago, with that same piercing glare and his familiar staff clutched in his hand.

"Master Merlin," Douxie replied, sinking to a knee. 900 years, and the respect that had been drilled into him had not waned, the motion as familiar as ever.

"Hisirdoux, my faithful apprentice, I need—" Merlin's familiar voice began, but, the moment of respect over, Douxie popped back up into standing.

"You're darn right I've been faithful! I've been mopping floors for a millennium!" He'd never believed that Merlin had forgotten him, but that didn't mean he wasn't personally offended that he went so many centuries without contact. "Why didn't you send a raven, o-or a text?" Douxie leant closer to his master's apparition. "There's texting now, you know!" One of the best inventions so far, in his humble opinion.

"I was busy, as you know," Merlin responded, unphased. His expression showed no sign of guilt or anger, just the usual superiority.

"Yeah? Well, I've been quite busy too, protecting the material plane while you weren't around."

"Hisirdoux, I need you—" Merlin began again, but Douxie flipped back to excited.

"About time! I've been practicing my incantations and my spells—"

"Enough!" Merlin spoke over him, and he subconsciously stepped back. "Matters are most dire! I need you to bring me the Guardians of Arcadia, with haste! There is a new threat, and we barely made it out alive."

"A new threat?" Douxie asked, "What is it? What's it after?"

Merlin barely acknowledged his question, except to stare piercingly at him. "I have my suspicions. Gather the Guardians!"

And then, before he could say another word, the green magic of his master's apparition faded away into the night, less substantial than fog. It was like he'd never been there in the first place.

Beside him, Archie said what Douxie was thinking. "Oh, it's our moment, all right. As errand boys."

Douxie couldn't help his sigh.

///

"Come on, then," Douxie said, feeling newfound purpose surge through him, feeling lighter. Finally, Merlin was back, and Douxie would get to do something besides sweep. New orders, new lessons, new ways to prove himself. Sure, Merlin hadn't treated him any different in the apparition, but he was sure that's just because his master was busy on this new threat. Douxie had grown a lot since Merlin had last seen him. He'd be able to do more to help him now.

Douxie felt the magic sweep through the entrance to the bookstore, granting them access, and held the door open for Steve, Toby, and Aaarrrgghh. "The answers to all your questions are within." _And hopefully, to all of mine._

He entered, feeling the familiar magical trails of his master's magic wash over him. Books and artifacts flew through the air, sustained by the vivid green of Merlin's magic, swirling together to be contained in chests. He heard Toby and Steve freaking out, as Aaarrrgghh silently watched with wide eyes. But Douxie just felt warm. It was good to be around magic that wasn't his, to feel the movement of the cosmos manipulated by Merlin's master hand.

He'd always fancied that he could _hear_ magic, though Morgana used to scoff at him for it. Merlin's sounded rich and familiar, some deep bass notes of unhurried, simple magic to gather things together to his subconscious thoughts. It had been too long since Douxie had heard it. It was like coming back to a favorite album after years, like rediscovering a tune that was as familiar as your own heartbeat. Douxie couldn't help but be comforted to hear the familiar strains of his master's magic.

Douxie watched Toby reach out and grab—was that the ship? It was—as it floated by him, sustained by verdant light. And a familiar command echoed down from the second story: "Put that down!"

They all looked up, and Douxie felt a rush of relief: there stood Merlin. He couldn't help the jaunty salute he threw up to his Master, nor the grin on his face. It was good to see him in person, not memory or apparition. "Thank the ether you're here. We haven't a moment to waste.

"Though I had hoped for more, Hisirdoux," Merlin said, his eyes sweeping across the starstruck Toby and confused Steve.

"I tried! I couldn't find the changelings or the aliens." Douxie couldn't help but feel like he'd already failed, but at least he had good reason! "I'm pretty sure most left the planet."

"Merlin, it's me—Toby Domzalski!" Toby interrupted, sounding far too excited for a meeting about a new dire threat, but Douxie could hardly blame him. "You know, War Hammer, Guardian of Arcadia, Geology Club president."

Merlin made his way down the staircase, tossing books and crystals into the chest that followed him, his magic guiding them inside the box with hardly a thought. "No one could forget you, chatty."

"And Steve Palchuk, Creepslayer!" Steve interjected, moving into some really stiff-looking karate chops, like the worst Jackie Chan in history. "I have no idea who you are," Merlin replied bluntly, and Douxie and Archie shared a look as Steve got knocked over the head with the chest that followed Merlin through the store. Douxie could relate; he'd had more than one near-concussion from standing too close to ingredients or books that flew around the room at Merlin's invisible command. "But we are desperate. Thankfully, we have the brute."

Said "brute" was approaching Archie, whose hackles were raised as Aaarrrgghh drifted closer to him. Douxie felt Archie's alarm echo through him, as the troll reached out to poke, examining Douxie's familiar hungrily.

Archie yowled and swiped at the troll, and growled back, "I'm not anybody's lunch. Got it?" Aaarrrgghh didn't flinch at the attack, but clutched at his nose in pain and nodded dumbly back at Archie.

"Wait, where's Jimbo and Claire?" Toby asked, "I thought they were with you."

"And what's this new threat?" Douxie couldn't contain himself anymore. If Merlin had said they'd barely made it out alive, what could possibly be the new danger?

Merlin continued gathering seemingly random books and magical artifacts from around the room. "Answers forthcoming. Make preparations. We've a journey ahead." Steve managed to duck under the chest, but Douxie strode after Merlin, not needing to look to duck out of the way of the floating books. "And don't," Merlin began.

"But, Master—" Douxie tried to reach for him.

"'But, Master' me." Merlin finished. His eyes met Douxie's. There was no secret laugh in them, as there might have been in less serious times when he saw through Douxie's forthcoming objections.

Douxie couldn't help but continue protesting, anyway. "But… are you sure you want to count on these children? They're clearly not ready for this." Merlin wasn't looking at him, just continuing to scan the room for other things he was packing.

Steve scoffed at him. "Excuse me, college dude, 'these children' fought off a 50-foot extraterrestrial!" Steve puffed out his chest and gestured broadly, but only succeeded in knocking off the helmet of the suit of armor that stood nearby. Steve screamed as the armor sprang to life and tried to wrestle its helmet back. Toby sprang to his rescue, "Dude, let go of its head!" But Steve, still wrestling, yelped back, "It's got my head, too, man!"

Douxie couldn't help watching with growing horror as the two wrangled with the armor, his exasperation growing by the second. It never even took _him_ that long to take care of armors back when he was prone to knocking into them himself.

He heard Merlin sigh behind him, and shook himself out of watching the two continue to struggle pointlessly. "Master, I'm ready for this."

"Doubtful." Merlin muttered, emotionless. But Douxie ploughed on.

"I've spent years preparing, centuries—"

Merlin held up a hand, and Douxie deflated. "Silence!" His master commanded, but it wasn't an angry rebuttal. Merlin turned to look at the Guardians behind them, and reiterated, "I mean, silence, all of you." And Douxie felt his heartrate speed up, Archie springing to the ready beside him.

"Can you not hear that?" Merlin asked the dumbfounded Guardians, Steve and Toby still fighting the armor for its helmet. They all shook their heads, but Douxie could. Subtle rumblings of magic, which then grew closer until it began to rattle the bookshelves and candelabras. The crystals began clinking together as whatever it was sent shockwaves of magic through the air.

Toby summoned his Warhammer, which lit him and the other guardians in its comforting orange light.

The bookstore creaked around them, long and low.

And then the streetlights outside flickered. The cuckoo clock on the mantle chimed its warning.

Merlin softly said, "Something wicked this way comes."

And Douxie held up his hand, activating his vambrace.

Merlin strode softly to the front window, and Douxie followed, coming up beside him. He squinted out at the seemingly quiet street.

Seemingly out of nowhere, a yellow maw jumped straight at him, a single gleaming eye fixed upon him. Douxie gasped and flinched, only for the shadow mephit to rebound off of the wards.

It tumbled back, into the street, but to Douxie's horror, it stood back up, surrounded by a group of others.

"Shadow mephits!" Merlin said, sounding surprised. "Hisirdoux, did you lead them here?"

"No, no!" Douxie protested, trying to make himself believe it. "I mean, I don't think so?"

"Yes, we did." Archie responded flatly. Douxie could only chuckle weakly at Merlin's growing glare. More of the mephits ran at the door and windows, rebounding off the barrier.

"He found us," Merlin said, eyes on the monsters. "The barrier won't hold for long." Douxie desperately wanted to ask who "he" was and if it was maybe _his_ fault that the mephits were here, not Douxie's, but Merlin turned to the Guardians. "We must make egress! Tobias, take my things!"

The chest rammed into Toby and carried him up, screaming, onto the roof.

The phasing heads of a few mephits managed to break into the store, and Merlin turned back, green magic forming in his palm and knocking one into oblivion. "All of you, to the roof!"

Merlin moved and grabbed the ship in its sphere, deftly dodging and destroying mephits as he went. Douxie followed, even as Merlin cast a glance at him. "Hisirdoux, I said get to safety."

Aaarrrgghh and Steve fled up the stairs, and Archie stood nearby, looking back at Douxie like he was insane, but he just summoned some of his own magic to his palms and stood back to back with his master. "I've got this. I can help."

Merlin groaned. "Still trying to earn that staff, are you?"

"Well, yeah," Douxie said, "I've learned a thing or two since we last met." He blasted two of the mephits away. Merlin led the way up the stairs, and Douxie guarded his back, hardly needing to look to know the layout of the bookstore after all the times he'd swept it. Douxie called for another blast of magic, only for Merlin to grab his hand and instruct, "Use the Flux Rune Second, it's stronger."

Douxie looked at his vambrace, seeing the arcane symbols glowing, and hastily scanned for the Flux Rune Second. "All right! I knew that!"

But across the room, his familiar called after him. "Douxie!" He was surrounded by mephits as they phased through the walls. "Arch!" He yelled, and, instead of trying to take out the enemies around him, repurposed his spell and lassoed his familiar up to him. Archie's familiar weight landed in his arms, and Douxie continued hurrying up the stairs. "I'm fine, no need to worry," came the sarcastic reply, and he hurriedly let Archie continue after Merlin.

More and more of the mephits had made their way into the bookstore, snarling. But Douxie's gaze alighted on one of the floating candles, and grinned to himself.

With a quick gathering and circle motion, Douxie called the candles together and stole their flames, feeding them with his own magic til they turned blue. From there he gathered more from the crackling fireplace, until he had enough flame. Then he drew it up, the mephits enthralled by its light and unknowing of their approaching doom, only to twist his hand and send the flames rocketing back onto the group of mephits.

They squealed as the magic flames burned them, scrambling across the room to try and save themselves, but Douxie knew they wouldn't make it. He couldn't help the laughter that bubbled up inside him; it had actually worked! Talk about ingenuity!

Merlin strode over to beside him. "Fire?" He asked, sounding dismayed, when he should've sounded congratulatory or at least somewhat proud and surprised at his apprentice's genius. "Yeah." Douxie responded, folding his arms contentedly. "Magic fire!"

But Merlin leaned closer to him, his glare silencing any triumph Douxie felt. "In a _bookstore_?"

"But mephits are vulnerable to fire—" Douxie protested, only to feel his master's staff prod him forward. "Move it!"

On the roof, Douxie stopped a few mephits from sneaking up on the Guardians, as Merlin readied his magic. "Stand back!" His master called, and broke the sphere on the roof.

From inside, green mist exploded, as the ship grew bigger and bigger, no longer contained by the sphere. The Guardians watched in awe as the sleek white stern of his master's ship expanded into full size, and Douxie grinned. He'd always loved flying that thing. "Ship just got real!" Steve exclaimed.

Thankfully, Aaarrrgghh scooped the other Guardians up and tossed them onto the ship. Merlin pulled his treasure chest to float alongside him, and ran toward the rapidly ascending ship as the troll did the same. Douxie watched his master ascend to the ship, and destroyed a few more of the mephits to give him time to activate the magic. Aaarrrgghh attempted to follow after the ship as the miniature heart of Avalon lit up, and Douxie blasted away the mephits trying to drag the troll away. His master just needed a minute to get the ship going, and there were still too many mephits on the roof… There were _too many_ mephits. Their number hadn't bothered him but now, looking around at them all, Douxie felt unease.

He may not have been great on his monsterology, but he knew that this many beasts needed a master, especially if they were so dedicated after a single target. He stopped walking toward the ship, and instead cast a glance over the roof edge onto the street below, to see a figure there that made his blood run cold.

An armored figure stood in the middle of the road, mephits circling him, their natural yellow magic seeming positively cheery next to the sickly yellow light that gleamed from underneath his helmet. No features were visible, just the sickly glow of the magic seeping from him, but even as Douxie watched, the mephits dove for the armored figure, and scattered into fog as he reabsorbed their magic.

"Boy…" came a rasping, hollow voice, and Douxie suppressed a shiver. The knight was magical; he could feel it from here—like nothing he'd felt before… ancient, malicious. Powerful. It hummed out from the figure in threatening, low notes, not needing to be loud to be intimidating.

Douxie scrambled back as the knight leapt up with inhuman agility onto the roof. The blank eyes of the helmet pierced him, and the magic only felt worse, more _wrong_ with the figure closer.

"Aaarrrgghh, get on the ship," Douxie yelled, and summoned another blast with his Flux Rune Second to clear a path to the ship. "Master, we gotta go!"

The knight stepped closer, drawing a long, wicked-looking blade from his back. The hilt and edge glowed with the same yellow-green magic as the knight himself, and Douxie highly doubted that it was merely for show. That blade had some brutal magic in it, he could feel it.

Behind him, the troll leapt after the ship, dragged on by Toby and Steve's combined efforts. Douxie backed up, continuing to blast mephits away as the armored figure stepped calmly, menacingly, after. "Merlin?!" Douxie yelled, and was rewarded when he heard his master gasp.

"Hisirdoux, get away from him!"

Douxie knew that Merlin couldn't cast any defensive magic with his staff occupied powering the ship. He also knew that the knight would surely try to stop them.

So Douxie did the only thing he could think of.

With a quick tap to his vambrace, Douxie lassoed the three nearest mephits and swung them around in a wide circle, eyes never leaving the knight. He released the magic as he completed the arc, sending the mephits tumbling onto the armored figure; at the same time, he flicked his fingers and summoned two runes right behind where his opponent stood.

As he expected, the mephits merely dispersed into fog upon reaching the knight, harmlessly reabsorbed, but attack was enough to make the knight take a minute step back, and Douxie grinned as the runes he'd just placed were activated. Blue globules of magic goo sprung up around the figure's ankles, and the soulless eyes glanced down, the knight finding himself trapped.

He held no illusions that his runes would stick around for long, but Douxie couldn't help but grinning his success as he finally turned and sprinted after the ship. It wouldn't stop the knight, but hopefully would impede him for long enough for them to escape.

Up on the ship, Archie and Merlin both looked at him with equal concern, his familiar changing form to grow his dragon wings and begin flapping closer. But Douxie merely grinned at him and summoned another whip, tossing it after the railing of the ship, launching into the sky as the ship took off.

And he nearly made it, too.

///

Merlin watched his apprentice fake out the armored figure below, feeling the slightest spark of approval at his deception. But far overriding that feeling was alarm at the proximity of the knight to his apprentice. He remembered the battle mere days ago when he first encountered the figure: the wounds which young Jim and Blinky had sustained, and the malicious yet somehow familiar magic of the armored figure. Merlin had not recognized him and couldn't place where he'd come across this magic before, but the armored figure had been singleminded. Violent. There were times during the frantic fight where Merlin thought that the knight was targeting _him_ , but that was preposterous. He didn't know enough yet to conclude why the knight attacked and what he wanted, though given how ancient the magic felt, Merlin had his suspicions.

And now his apprentice was facing down the knight—his foolish, youthful apprentice who still used Flux Rune First even after all this time. Merlin could not help the concern that rose within him.

Douxie, having delayed the knight, sent his magic whip after the ship and leapt up to join them, magic speeding his jump. The boy's familiar flew to meet him, but Merlin watched the knight, who, stuck in place by Douxie’s runes, instead drew back his sword…

"Look out!" Merlin yelled, and the Guardians all ducked, but his apprentice was too slow.

The knight sent a wave of yellow-tinged shards streaking through the air after them, several impacting the side of the ship and whistling past their heads, but Merlin saw Douxie flinch and crumple the last few feet onto the deck of the ship.

"Hisirdoux!" Merlin called, but ignored the part of him that wanted to race to his apprentice's side, and instead slammed his staff forward, sending the ship rocketing up and off into the clouds.

Far below them, Merlin felt the malicious magic of the knight disappear.

His apprentice's familiar rushed to the boy, as Douxie groaned. "Douxie?" Toby asked, rushing closer and helping Archie turn the boy onto his back.

Merlin felt something deep inside him freeze as he saw one of the knight's shards embedded in his apprentice's chest, glowing unnaturally red.

"Young Palchuk, hold this," Merlin ordered, grabbing the youth by his collar and placing his hands on Merlin's stave. "Do not move."

And finally he let himself hurry over to his apprentice's side, magic springing to his fingertips as he reached for the boy. Archie had shifted back to his cat form, anxiously nuzzling Douxie's shoulder and calling his name.

Though his eyes were closed, the boy was still conscious, wincing, and slowly he curled in on himself, reaching for the shard. "Hold still, Hisirdoux," Merlin commanded, and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, the other tracing runes in the air. His magic surrounded the boy, attempting to identify the foreign magic.

Even as his magic seeped into his apprentice, trying to both remove and diagnose his pain, Merlin knew something was wrong. Deeply, deeply wrong. The shard reacted against Douxie's own magic, flaring red and tainting his apprentice's aura. More than the physical wound—which was bad enough on its own—the shard was imbued with a poisonous magic, seeking to corrupt and destroy. Even as Merlin's magic surrounded it, the onyx shard flared against him too, sinking further into Douxie's chest and causing the boy to bite back a yell. The shard was digging deeper, blocking the boy's magic and slowly corrupting it to the owner's will.

Merlin felt as though an icy hand had taken a hold of his chest. The shard would kill him, would destroy everything that made his apprentice _Douxie_ , would eat away at his magic until it consumed him.

And Merlin, despite his centuries of knowledge, the vast experience he wielded, the many magical and physical skills he possessed… didn't know what to do. He did not know how to remove the shard without harming his apprentice more, couldn't ease the corruption without exposing his own magic or potentially causing it to increase.

"It's bad, huh?"

Merlin looked up, and found that Douxie had opened his eyes. His apprentice, face contorted in a grimace, locked eyes with him. The boy didn't look scared, which was maybe the worst part—that indicated that he still trusted Merlin, that he thought his master would fix this.

After a slightly too long moment, Merlin placed his hand over his apprentice's. "I cannot treat this until we are safely in Camelot. I must put you in stasis to stop the magic from spreading too far until then."

But Douxie struggled against him, and leveraged himself onto his elbows. "But, Master! That knight will probably come back. Let me help!"

"Don't," Merlin gripped his shoulder tighter. "'But, Master' me. It won't be but a moment to you."

Douxie continued to struggle to rise, however, and this time his familiar aided him, shifting to his dragon form to support Douxie's shoulder. "I respectfully refuse, Master. At this rate, Steve is going to steer us straight into Neptune, and you'll need your magic to get us safely to Camelot. Look!" Douxie managed to sit fully up, his hands clenched at his sides and gasping slightly for breath. "I'm fine for now."

Merlin examined his apprentice, the tightness at the corner of his eyes and the fake smile he plastered on. _Hisirdoux can not lie to save his life_ , Merlin remembered. It was one of the first things he'd learned about the boy--or rather, even when he _did_ lie, Merlin could see straight through him. _And he would never argue a point this long._ It seemed 900 years may have taught his apprentice something after all.

"Very well," Merlin responded, tracing a sigil in the air and applying a minor pain relief spell to the boy. "You are not to do any unnecessary magic, and you are going to remain there until Tobias helps you off the ship when we land."

"Cross my heart," the boy responded, grinning back. Merlin, used to the newfangled phrases which Jim and Claire were so fond of, did not question the strange words, but subtly glanced at Archie. The familiar met his eyes, still looking scared, but nodded at him. He could at least count on the familiar to keep Douxie from doing too much.

He found it harder than he expected to return to the prow and take over steering again from the terrified Palchuk. Part of him wanted to stay there with his apprentice, though he could do nothing to ease the lines of pain nor the malicious red magic seeping into him.

...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N:** i have no clue how good this is, nor have i edited it much, but i needed to post this a) to motivate me to write more and b) because why not?
> 
> so here you go, this fic really is just an excuse to whump douxie, and get a little extra merlin redemption/POV because gosh dang it i hated him in trollhunters but he grew on me by the end of wizards.
> 
> .
> 
> I've written parts of the rest of this, I'll probably skim most of the middle part of the show, and only hit portions that change, but i'm not sure how long that'll take. I'll also tag more characters when I post the next chapter; trust me, there's gonna be plenty of Claire because I love her and Douxie's sibling relationship and I guess Steve is there too sometimes. Also Wizards needed more Jim so he'll be around more too
> 
> .
> 
> Yes, I did use dialogue straight from the show for most of this chapter--I claim NO ownership of it at all, and from here on out there will be a lot less of that, and after this chapter it will hopefully be better paced? this chapter just feels rushed to me (it's only through like half of the first episode?? guys this show moves so fast)
> 
> .
> 
> Title from a translation of Oedipus at Colonus


	2. Chapter 2

Far before he could see it, Douxie could _hear_ the consistent, rich drumbeat of the Heart of Avalon. That much magic, sustained by his master, was unmistakable, and it had been so long since Douxie had heard it. He couldn't help but sit up a little taller in anticipation and was awarded with the first glimpse of the pristine white turrets of Camelot.

Steve saw it next, and pointed excitedly. "What the heck is that?" None of the Guardians could contain their awe as the castle came in sight. Douxie even saw Merlin smile, just a little bit, at their overt excitement.

Merlin began explaining to the awestruck Steve and Toby about the Heart of Avalon, but Douxie wasn't listening. Archie hadn't left his side, his familiar a warm weight in stark contrast to the freezing pain that Douxie couldn't shake, emanating from the onyx shard. It unnerved him to look at, seeing that strangely orange glow emanating from a literal shard of metal in his chest, but thankfully the appearance of Camelot on the horizon was a sufficient distraction from the pain and unease.

Douxie and Archie hadn't seen the castle in centuries. Without needing to ask, Archie helped Douxie stand up, leaning heavily on the side of the ship, to get a closer look as Merlin brought them in a loose arc toward the floating castle. It looked just as they'd left it. That was where Douxie had played that excellent prank on Morgana, and that turret was the one Gwaine had once threatened to throw Archie off of… the memories came flooding back to him. Douxie felt his breaths start to slow, the adrenaline leaving him in the face of the indescribable comfort of seeing his old home.

Archie looked worriedly at him as Douxie slumped a little more onto the railing, but Douxie just reached out and ran his hands through his fur. "Good to be back, eh?"

Archie's purr was the only answer. They looped up to the watchtower, and Douxie saw a familiar portly figure. "Sir Galahad, how look the skies?" Merlin called, and the knight lifted his head.

"All quiet, my old friend!" Came the reply, and Douxie grinned, lifting a hand in a weak greeting at the eager waving from the knight.

"Keep your eyes on the horizon!" Merlin ordered, his tone a little sharper than before. "I fear we may have more trouble on the way."

Then they swooped down, toward the front gate, Merlin leaning a little harder on the staff, and they sped up. Beside him, Archie stiffened. "I say, coming in a little hot, don't you think?" Archie managed to mostly fake an unconcerned tone, looking to Merlin but drifting closer to Douxie.

Merlin glanced over at them, raising an eyebrow, but Douxie just grinned at him. "Rubbish!" was his master's response, and Douxie swore they sped up even more into the green barrier ward the stood over the front gate.

Douxie braced himself, but the usual clattering landing still managed to cause a fresh wave of pain, and he bit back a yell. If Archie noticed that his fingers had gone white-knuckled around the railing, he didn't say anything.

Steve leapt off the side of the ship with a whoop of excitement, and Toby dutifully came back to offer Douxie a helping hand in descending from the ship. Douxie was about to take it, when a large, stone hand slid behind him, and he found himself in the gentle grip of Aaarrrgghh. The troll gave him a slow grin, and softly carried him the short distance to the marble floor. Douxie tried to ignore the feeling of shame deep inside him that he returned to his home like an invalid, but Archie glared at him reprovingly as Aaarrrgghh set him down, and Douxie instead gave the troll a thankful chuckle.

Merlin was watching him, eyes sharp, but Douxie forced himself to stand upright once Aaarrrgghh put him down. He wouldn't prove a burden to his master.

Without a word, Merlin took off toward the study, and the Guardians followed. Douxie kept glancing around, the familiar sight of the entry hall incredibly comforting. "It's been 900 years since I was last here… Hasn't changed a bit." Even cast in the bright green of his master's magic, it was like Douxie had never left. "Except for the flying part."

Beside him, Steve let out a disbelieving laugh. "'Nine hundred years'? Yeah, right. You're like, what? Like, nineteen?"

Archie, at his side, adjusted his spectacles. "Give or take a few centuries." Douxie grinned at the stunned Palchuk and followed Merlin inside. But as he started walking, the pain in his chest made itself known again, and a cold fear wrapped around his insides. Would he even make it another century? He hadn't spent much time contemplating mortality; he'd been too busy trying to train and prepare for Merlin's eventual return. All wizards knew they would die, of course, but that didn't mean they prepared for it. Douxie hadn't thought of it in years.

Thankfully, Steve jogged up beside him, and asked, "So, how many things can your cat turn into?" Douxie exchanged a look with Archie, and the familiar rolled his eyes. Seeing that Douxie was walking okay, Archie had taken to the air, and though he stayed within sight, flew up to look at the higher levels. It was easier to not think about the foreboding glance Merlin had given him earlier if he was busy answering Palchuk's inane questions. "That depends. How many things are there?"

Ahead of them, three figures emerged from the hallway, and Toby let out a yell of delight. "Jimbo! Claire!"

The Trollhunter, Jim, stood at the top of the stairs, leaning heavily on his armor-clad girlfriend. He and the other troll—Blinky? Yes, Douxie remembered now—looked worse for wear: Blinky had one of his arms in a sling, and was scratched and burned, and Jim had portions of his armor dented and marked, and walked with a heavy limp.

The Guardians ran and reunited, Aaarrrgghh's large arms encircling all of them and lifting the others in a fierce embrace. When Blinky and Jim winced, and Claire wheezed, "Not so tight," however, he put them down gently.

"Whoa, hey, Steve's here too!" Steve ran after them, but was greeted only by a cursory glance from Blinky, and Jim and Claire exchanged a look before turning back to him. "Oh." Claire said, and Jim wryly gave him a smile. "Hi, Steve."

From across the room, Douxie could hear faint magical notes emanating from Claire, and the glowing lines of her armor. Much more subdued than in past interactions with her, but the same sharp notes, as though from a violin, sang from her every move. It was the same slightly off-key melody Douxie used to associate with Morgana, but now just knew to be shadowmancy. Claire's sounded much brighter than Morgana's ever did.

Toby looked in dismay at his friends, however. "What happened to you guys?"

"Some ancient, dark warrior," Blinky responded, voice somber. "An unstoppable knight, clad in green…"

"Same thing that happened to us," Merlin responded, and Douxie felt his master's eyes come back to rest on him.

"The knight came after you again?" Jim asked. The Trollhunter looked back at him, and he stepped closer. "He got you with one of those shards…"

Douxie tried to laugh, but found that he didn't really have it in him to play it off.

"Which is why you will be _resting_ while I prepare our next move," Merlin commanded, "If you refuse stasis. But if that onyx shard continues its path, it will work its way to your heart, Hisirdoux, and I shall not allow that."

Archie returned to his side, and Douxie exchanged a glance with him. At least Merlin would let him stay out of stasis for now. "Of course, Master. But in the meanwhile, let me come help you prepare."

"Do we know anything else about the knight that might help us?" Toby asked. The kid still hadn't shaken the wide look in his eyes that he'd worn since Douxie had gotten hit.

"I got a better look at him this time," Merlin responded. "He bore the emblem of Camelot." Douxie cast a glimpse at one of the ubiquitous pennants that still hung over the banisters. What was some ancient, evil knight doing, stealing Camelot's sigil like that?

But his master merely turned back to look at him. "Come with me, quickly." He told the room, his voice grave and steady. "I fear the answer lies in the past.

"A dark menace is coming," Merlin said, "one even I cannot face alone."

///

While Merlin brought out the time map and gave the Guardians a short history on the wars of magic, Douxie settled down in the familiar disarray of Merlin's study. It remained cluttered and dusty, and something deep inside him felt the need to grab the broom that stood nearby, but instead, Douxie settled against one of the bookshelves. Even when Archie gave him the stink eye, Douxie refused to sit down. Some part of him was worried he wouldn't be able to get back up.

It was harder to drown out the cold pain emanating from the onyx, now that he was stationary and didn't have anything to distract him. At his feet, Archie said nothing, but twined himself around his ankles worriedly. Douxie knew his familiar could feel at least part of his pain, but he wouldn't say anything. Not unless it got really bad. He could bear this, for now. It was uncomfortable, and every time he moved he feared a new surge of pain would erupt, but Douxie could do this. He would be fine.

And he'd almost convinced himself of it, too, when the deep clangs of the alarm bell erupted through the silence, and everyone flinched.

Barely had the bell begun to sound when a loud crunching sound, something like a loud crack of ice breaking over a lake, broke through the air and Douxie heard, more than felt, some shrill notes of unfamiliar magic. The bell stopped with a mournful, resounding knell, the echo reverberating weirdly. And in the aftermath, the whole castle shook, sending the Guardians stumbling around the room. Douxie felt gravity seize him, and almost face-planted, but Archie hurriedly shifted and supported him, saving him from slamming into the floor.

"What's happening?" Claire yelled, but Merlin had already risen, and with Archie's help, Douxie made himself stand up too. "Have you never been under attack before?" Merlin asked, leading the way out of the room. "To the battlements!"

Douxie was too focused on putting one foot in front of the other to pay much attention to the others; he just doggedly sprinted up the stairs after Merlin, adrenaline firing through him. Every footstep sent a jarring sensation through his chest, and Douxie gritted his teeth against the dull pain that resulted. The onyx shard was still glowing, that dim red-orange, and it felt so wrong. It was like it was tinnitus in his ears; always present, throwing off his balance just enough to be noticeable, but not enough to make him stop.

Merlin led him up to the battlements, and together they beheld the enemy before them. Archie flew up beside them, having taken the shortcut out of the window, and, voice carefully held steady, said, "I think we have something of a problem."

Before them was rising, out of the clouds, a giant floating castle much like their own, lit from within with sinister orange magic, magic seeping from its every window. "Oh, fuzzbuckets," Douxie muttered.

But as the main windows rose into view, two giant circles with orange and yellow light gleaming within like piercing eyes, Merlin identified it, and Douxie felt a bigger fear overwhelm him. "No… the Arcane Order… they found us."

The castle was approaching, already having frozen Galahad's sentry tower. The magic emanating from the castle was ancient, powerful, like nothing Douxie had run across before.

"Everyone, get to safety, now!" Merlin commanded, and to Douxie's surprise, his master shoved him back toward the interior of the castle. He began to protest, only to see a blue-white beam of frost emanate from a figure on one of the battlements, and Merlin gathered his power. " _Fulgur praeca_!"

The magic beams clashed, green against frost, but the resulting backfire blew both Merlin and Douxie back. The blast had been enough to send Merlin's staff spinning from his hands, but even as he yelled after it, Archie dove.

Knowing his familiar would take care of it, Douxie returned to the battlements, in time to see the true assault begin. The giant castle—he could see it now, arranged in such a way that the lower levels looked like the jaw, the whole thing forming a grotesque skull—floated closer, and cannons along its side, manned by the familiar yells of goblins, began to fire.

Merlin took over, calling the ancient protections of Camelot to the fore, but Douxie just watched the castle. The Arcane Order… he knew of it, what wizard didn't? He didn't know why they would come after Camelot, but whatever the reason, it couldn't be good.

The two castles exchanged fire, but it was too exposed here on the battlements. Every shot that came too close rocked him and Merlin, and Douxie was alarmed at how quickly he lost his balance. "We must flee!" Merlin commanded, sending the time map, sustained by his magic, to the steering post. Douxie, desperate to do something and 80% certain he was up to this (and 100% certain he was going to do it anyway) leapt after it. "I'm on it!"

He quickly attached the time map to the steering post and strained against the rudder. It pulled at his chest uncomfortably to stretch like this, but he wasn't about to stop. "I've got it, I've got it, I've got it," he said, unsure if he was talking to himself or Merlin.

Camelot turned enough to not be taken down immediately by the other castle ramming into them, but to Douxie's horror, he saw two blue-white frost bridges spring into existence, anchoring the two castles together. "They're boarding us!" Merlin warned. "We must break free! Steer us clear at my command!"

"I'm on it!" Douxie yelled back, confident that he at least could hold the position until Merlin told him. He could do this.

He could totally do this.

///

Claire, Jim, and Toby fended off the shadow mephits crawling onto Camelot from those unnatural ice bridges. Aaarrrgghh and Blinky tried to do the same, defending Merlin's study, while the master himself rallied the enchanted armors. Archie flew threw it all, throwing fireballs when he could and thought it would make a difference, but scanning everywhere for that telltale green light.

He knew it wasn't up there, but he had to fly by the top of the tower, to check on his familiar. His connection with Douxie thrummed with adrenaline and pain—not a combination Archie was fond of. Douxie was stubborn enough to do whatever he needed to, to help Merlin, but Archie was worried about the fallout. He'd been there too many times after Douxie crashed from overextending himself. He had hoped that when Merlin came back it would mean a new normal, a new chance for Douxie to prove himself. Instead it was just _more_ dangerous situations. Douxie was good enough at getting himself into those, thank you very much. Archie was rather miffed, all in all, with Merlin's return.

Douxie activated his Flux Rune Second and blasted away another mephit, fending off the hordes from the steering post. He looked up even before Archie was in view, and locked eyes with him. "Archie, find the staff or we are all dead meat!" His familiar yelled at him, but Archie didn't need him to tell him that. "What do you people think I'm doing?" A grumble of discontent came through their bond, and Archie suppressed a smile in spite of the circumstances—Douxie knew he mostly just wanted to check on him.

Maybe this still _could_ be a way for Douxie to prove himself to Merlin. If they survived this fight with the Arcane Order, Merlin could hardly ignore Douxie's commitment or obedience, now could he? Now that he was defending the castle even with a bloody shard in his chest.

Archie ducked one of the cannonballs whistling through the air, and amended his statement. They _did_ have to survive this fight, first. He kept scanning for any trace of Merlin's signature green magic.

The master wizard himself was hacking away at one of the ice bridges with his sword, of all things. "Archie, I'm running out of time, here!"

But it was then he saw it. Tucking his wings in for a steep dive, Archie swooped and clutched at the ancient staff. "Got it!"

///

Claire, Jim, and Steve had been driven up to the main spire as they defended the castle, and Douxie was more than grateful for it. Drawing on his magic kept making the onyx shard flare uncomfortably, and though he'd managed to fend the shadow mephits off, awaiting Merlin's order, by the time the others got there, he was panting and seriously considering retreating himself. But between Jim's blade and Steve's flailing, they managed to clear the roof, just as Douxie heard: "Hisirdoux, now!"

Immediately he opened the time map and began setting all the lenses in place. "Please don't blow us up, please don't blow us up," Douxie pleaded, thankfully remembering to twist the axion dial twice and place the two lenses parallel. It had been so long since he'd learned how to use this.

"We don't have enough power for the jump!" Archie warned, flying by. Claire and Steve stood next to him, as Douxie prepared to guide Camelot once again. Douxie knew it—knew this wasn't going to work. Experience told him this wasn't going to work, the magic swirling through the Heart of Avalon wasn't going to have enough power, he knew it wouldn't work.

So Douxie fell back on the only thing he could.

"Trust in Merlin!" He yelled back, hoping his voice didn't waver.

Far below them, at the source of the Heart, Douxie felt a giant flare of magic, like windpipes echoing through a forest, overwhelm the ticking of the great Heart. The surge of greenish magic surrounded the tower, locking the gears into place and gathering, the magical energy primed. "Hold together," Douxie said, as Claire and Steve flinched behind him. "Come on!"

The magic expanded, exploding out in a beam that tore a rift in the sky across from them. The green magic revealed a hole, through which Douxie could see Camelot—ancient Camelot, his old home—sitting on its isle with the ocean tumbling around it. And Douxie strained against the rudder, finding he couldn't heave it around fast enough, as a flash of pain nearly made him lose his grip. "We have to steer Camelot through the time rift!" He turned, but Claire was already leaping forward to help him, and Steve quickly followed. They were going to make it!

But then an almighty blast rocked the castle, and Douxie found it leaning too far, too far, until gravity took hold of him and he slipped, tumbling down as the castle tilted. He skidded along the roof for a moment before losing grip entirely, and flew downward. Steve was screaming as he too tumbled down, but Jim and Claire had managed to catch themselves on the battlements.

Douxie braced himself, and grabbed for one too. The pain whited out his senses for a moment as he impacted, but Douxie was able to grab onto the parapet before he was dragged all the way into open air.

He couldn't see Merlin. And he couldn't get Camelot back upright like this; unable to concentrate to activate his vambrace, too unskilled with flight runes to get himself back up to the steering post.

But Merlin wanted them to retreat through the time rift. That had to be his plan, right?

Steve tried to grab for the parapet, but missed by inches, and Douxie felt his grip slipping. "What do we do?" Claire yelled, but Jim had already let go, streaking after Palchuk.

"Trust me," Douxie said, and grabbed Claire's hand. "Wait!" She resisted him for a second, but when Douxie lost his grip, she did too, and they fell together, as Jim managed to grab the flailing Palchuk. "Flying castles suck!" Steve yelled. They were freefalling, toward the rift.

There was another giant blast of magic, and to Douxie's horror, he heard the measured, comforting ticking of the Heart fracture, stutter, and then stop. Camelot itself was freefalling now, and Douxie saw the rift closing. "Douxie!" Archie was yelling after him. They just had to hope they…

A wash of green magic enveloped them, and the air felt warmer, the sun suddenly shining on them. And then the rift closed, and Douxie felt it like a string had been cut: his connection to his familiar, the echoing strains of Merlin's magic, all gone in a moment.

They were in the past.

But they were still freefalling.

Douxie scrambled, and reached for his vambrace. He hadn't been able to concentrate before, but suddenly his head was clearer. He activated it without a thought, and hastily scanned the runes. He activated them, stretching his hand out in front of him, but nothing happened.

"Oh, come on! Come on!" Again, he tried, and again. He'd done this spell so many times…

And finally, with a burst of blue light, the spell activated. A light blue field expanded in front of them, and Douxie had just enough time to warn the others "This is gonna hurt!" before they hit the first one, and they all flinched, caught for a sparse moment before the magic dissipated.

He cast another antigravity spell, and another, ignoring Palchuk's complaining. The ground was approaching at breakneck speed, the autumn-colored trees spread below them like a blanket. Then, with several scratches and just enough time to brace himself—they hit the ground.

He heard successive thumps as the others landed around him, and Douxie tried to turn himself over to face them, wincing in anticipation of how bad this was sure to hurt, only to find… the onyx shard hurt… less? He glanced down at it. The glow was slightly faded, its ominous weight somehow… lighter. Douxie stared down at it in confusion.

From the sounds of it, Jim had managed to land on top of Palchuk, and the blond wheezed out, "What… just… happened?"

"Well," Douxie responded, the answer coming subconsciously as he stared down at the shard in his chest, "I just conjured an anti-gravity spell to slow our fall and keep us from dying." Palchuk whimpered again as Jim got off him. "You're welcome."

Next to him, Claire reached over and helped him sit up. "Douxie, where is the flying castle?"

Douxie glanced up, through the tree branches, and… yeah, the sky was empty. He'd already figured, but that didn't make it any less terrifying to realize exactly how bad this had gone. "Oh, fuzzbuckets!"

The other three were glancing at him in clear terror, so Douxie tried to gather himself. "Well, it would appear, uh, we've had ourselves a temporal accident."

Claire, of course, was not having it. "Which means…?"

But then Palchuk screamed, and pointed, and there was the ringing of steel. Douxie turned, and found himself face to face with an all-too familiar sword, wielded by a knight on horseback, pointed at his throat. And in fact, all around them, Camelot's knights emerged from the bushes, swords drawn.

"It means…" Douxie muttered, feeling strangely excited and also terrified to be confronted with such familiar figures, "We are lost in time."

In front of him, the knight raised his sword higher. "What manner of sorcery is this?" It was definitely not the voice one Douxie wanted to hear right now, but he still knew who it was.

Behind him, Steve screamed again.

///

On the plus side, Douxie knew _exactly_ when they were. On the downside, he almost would have picked literally any other period in history.

He had tried to take control of the situation, but the presence of Jim, his troll form quite noticeable, was very hard to move past, given the height of human/troll tensions at the time. Thankfully, Claire had kept the King from immediately murdering him, but that didn't mean they were home free.

And to top it off, they were all scattered where Douxie couldn't keep an eye on them. Claire had been immediately picked by Morgana—and Douxie had barely been able to suppress his shiver at seeing _her_ again, even though her magic was so much softer than it would become, even though she still looked at him like the annoying little brother he'd always been to her—and Steve had been so awestruck by Lancelot that Douxie was unsurprised to see him happily disappear after the knight. Jim would be in the dungeons by now, _and_ on top of being separated, Douxie still hadn't decided if he was going to tell this past Merlin the truth or not.

All in all, among the worse situations he'd been in throughout the centuries. Especially since he didn't have Archie with him, and couldn't shake the foreboding feeling deep in his gut that grew every time he was reminded about the onyx shard.

It had stopped hurting, which was… hypothetically reassuring, but in actuality just made him more nervous. The feeling of pressure that it had exerted was gone, now just a slight twinge of unease whenever he stretched too far. The orange-red glow had dimmed, and, once Douxie summoned a set of his old clothes, it was mostly obscured by the clasps and hood. Most people wouldn't notice it. When they all jumped back in time, Douxie supposed, it must have frozen the corruption in place.

But despite that reassurance, this was still really not an ideal situation. It was one of Merlin's few rules without an exception: _Don't mess with time._ Small changes would cascade into huge ones in the blink of an eye, the passing of a second. Everything they did here in the past would have to be carefully measured, controlled, inconspicuous. He was decently sure that if he could convince Claire not to kill Morgana for something she hadn't done yet, or attack Arthur for trying to kill her boyfriend, then she would be okay. Unfortunately, Jim was stuck in the dungeons, but that meant he couldn't change too much; and Douxie had thoroughly warned him against _any_ mention of the Trollhunter amulet or using _any_ of its powers. He didn't want to find out what would happen if Jim tried to activate the magic and caused a reaction with the as-yet-unmade past amulet, or if one of the trolls saw it and figured out how to claim the power. There were just too many ways to screw up, and the Trollhunter amulet in particular was _very_ instrumental in the timeline. And Steve… would likely mess up the timeline in 0.5 seconds if left alone with anything important, but hopefully couldn't cause too many paradoxes as a squire. Douxie hoped, anyway.

Their only hope was the Time Map. It could be harnessed to show potential futures and measured the state of the timeline. If Douxie remembered how to use it right, he could use it to find them a way back to the present (he hoped).

So off he went, to put to sleep his past self in that ridiculous man bun, hoping beyond hope that he wasn't shattering the time-space continuum. He wasn't quite sure that putting his past self to sleep was the best solution, but once he'd explained the situation and exchanged a glance with Archie—good old Archie, always the one with the brain cell, even back in the 1200s—and saw what a blabbering idiot he had been, Douxie knew it would be fine.

He turned back to look at Archie. "I know this looks bad, but I swear I've got this under control."

His familiar looked back at him, unimpressed. It was weird to be standing right next to him and feel only faint twinges of emotion through their familiar bond—this wasn't his Archie, as much as he wished it was. But the magic was still there, and they were close enough that faint aftereffects floated through, like a song playing from behind a closed door. Archie was mostly exasperated, with a twinge of concern for the past Douxie whom he'd just seen stuffed into an armoire, but he remained unruffled. Douxie was so grateful that he could rely on Archie to be his usual self, in the midst of the unstable footing of returning to his old home.

"If that were true," Archie said, as Douxie looked worriedly down the passageway, hoping Merlin was still occupied, "things in the future have really changed."

"Oh, ha-ha," Douxie muttered. "Just don't go blabbing to Merlin, okay? I need to stay incognito."

It was at that moment that the armoire behind him flew open and he was knocked over by the still-snoring Past Douxie.

"Fine. This should be fun to watch." Archie said. His tail was even twitching in anticipation.

Hurriedly, Douxie looked down at his chest. Somehow in the fall he'd managed not to jostle the shard.

Of course, this made Archie take notice. "Hold on a moment, new Douxie…" he began, but Douxie pushed himself upright and magicked his past self back into the cabinet.

And thankfully, before Archie could continue, Merlin's voice interrupted them. "Hisirdoux, what is taking so long?"

Even as his past self fell again out of the armoire, Douxie called back, "Just cleaning up another mess."

And he hurried off to the study, before Archie could ask any more questions. The sooner he got the time map, the better.

He managed to sneak, hopefully inconspicuously, into the study as Morgana and Merlin were in the midst of one of their frequent arguments. Douxie had heard it with increasing regularity as he'd grown as Merlin's apprentice, the tired routine becoming so frequent that by the time Killahead came around, the days were blurs of cleaning and Morgana arguing.

When she finally left, with an ominous threat of Arthur coming after them next, _blah blah, blah,_ Douxie found his chance to pick up the time map from where it had fallen. He almost had it, too, but Merlin was fed up with his ineptitude, and picked up the books and map with his magic.

"You don't seem yourself today, Hisirdoux." Merlin said, and Douxie's heart stuttered to a stop. "Except for your ability to tidy up." Then started beating again.

Mentally resigning himself to milking the Slorr, though he hadn't missed that at all in 900 years, Douxie just gave an apologetic grin back. That seemed like something his past self would do, right? He had to grit his teeth to keep any rebuttals back, but he knew that Merlin's glare was not one to be trifled with.

He'd come back for the time map, soon. Before anything else could go wrong.

///

So the jail break was maybe not his _best_ idea ever, and it did technically work out okay, but that didn't mean Douxie wasn't a _little_ nervous sneaking back into Merlin's study later that afternoon. By the look Archie had given him when they left Claire and Steve and headed back for the wizard's tower, his familiar could even feel the _smidge_ of nerves he felt.

But Merlin's study was quiet, dark, and everything seemed fine. He managed to mess up the arcane sigils on the safe door, however, and ignored Archie's glare. Douxie tried again, and again, and was about to try again when—

"Looking for this?"

Merlin sat, framed against the stained-glass windows, a deep frown between his eyebrows. He was tapping nonchalantly on the white exterior of the time map.

"Or perhaps this?" Merlin asked, and with a wave of his hand, brought the still-sleeping past Douxie floating into view.

And Douxie felt his stomach sink straight into his toes. "Oh, fuzzbuckets."

///

"I knew my apprentice was an ignoramus, but traveling through time? _TIME?!_ "

It took even less time than usual for Merlin to give him a dressing-down. Evidently, in all his wide-reaching wisdom, Merlin had figured out everything, without Douxie having to explain anything, and proceeded to tell him so, starting the lecture of a lifetime. He already knew about the jailbreak, and the kids he'd brought with him into the past, and wanted to know why one of them was a _half-troll_ , and seriously how did Merlin know all of this?

"And, Hisirdoux!" Merlin finished yet another rotation around the room before coming to a stop in front of him, his finger raised accusingly. "What does all that have to do with that malicious magic shard you're trying to hide with your hood?"

Douxie froze—so did past Douxie, who had been shrinking in on himself and hiding by one of the bookshelves, evidently still uncomfortable with Merlin's admonishment even if it wasn't directed at himself—and felt Archie perk up his ears. Merlin's voice had not gotten softer, but perhaps his eyes had, as they stared into his own, as his master's magic once again surrounded the onyx shard.

He braced himself, but even as Merlin's magic surrounded it, a flare of pain so bright he couldn't think past it consumed Douxie's thoughts. He flinched back, and knocked Merlin's hand away.

Merlin had frozen too, staring at him in shock—at his brazenness, in all likelihood.

"It, uh, it reacts to magic, Master." Douxie muttered back, blinking away black spots from his vision. "We were attacked before we fell through the time rift, and I got hit with this. Merlin—your future self—wanted to put me in stasis until he could analyze and treat it. But we didn't have time before the Arcane Order was on us." He ignored past Douxie's yelp of fear at the name and Archie's surprise.

Merlin quirked one eyebrow, and stepped closer again, this time his hand was void of magic as it lifted Douxie's hood and examined the onyx shard. It had flared red when Merlin's magic touched it, but was now back to a muted orange. "I think coming back to the past somehow stopped its progress. It doesn't hurt hardly at all, except when someone tries to touch it with magic, apparently." Douxie watched his master's face. It's not like this Merlin would know anything more about it than his future self, but Douxie was still somehow hoping that the furrow between his brows would clear and Merlin would have some magic solution. That he'd know exactly what to do.

"You may be correct there, Hisirdoux," Merlin said. "It appears to be a magical taint. It was in the process of blighting your magical aura, but removed from its own time, it has no power to continue. But I'll need to do some research." Merlin's eyes came up to meet his, his gaze steely. "This is a powerful, malicious magic. I do not yet know how to heal it."

Douxie ignored the slight disappointment that arose within him, and just nodded. "I understand, Master." He had guessed as much.

Merlin placed a heavy hand on his shoulder, and Douxie looked up at him in confusion. Was his Master trying to… comfort him?

But then Merlin gripped his shoulder and propelled him up, toward the table where the time map lay. "But we have another pressing matter on our hands," Merlin's voice had resumed its imperious tone. "That being, the entire timeline and the fate of all humanity! You broke the first taboo I ever taught you! _Time,_ Hisirdoux!"

"I think we handled ourselves just fine, all things considered," Douxie replied. "And, technically, it was _your_ idea."

"Well, then you must have botched it up! My planning is _flawless_."

The comfort of Merlin's hand on his shoulder did not last long, especially when it was revealed that their jailbreak may or may not have resulted in a timeline where King Arthur died. Douxie hadn't exactly seen that coming.

...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N:** aaaaand here is where i have run out of pre-written fic, off into the unknown we go!
> 
> .
> 
> ahh i'm so glad you all are enjoying this!!! thanks for the comments and kudos, it honestly means the world. I'd like to apologize in advance for if the next chapter takes a little while to finish, but I haven't written any of it yet and I'm in the midst of midterm season so... it may be a little while.
> 
> .
> 
> also I promise that Claire and Jim will be in this more! eventually! I'm figuring it out as I go tbh.
> 
> again, some of the dialogue here comes straight from the show, i do not claim any ownership to those lines. i'm not half as funny as this show is.
> 
> and yes I did just handwave away why Jim can't use his sword in the past in this AU that he trusts Douxie that much to not use it. it would probably cause world-ending explosions and explode the past amulet. something like that. don't think about it too hard.
> 
> but thank you all so much for your support! I hope you continue to enjoy this little plot bunny that has completely consumed me haha


	3. Chapter 3

At the entrance to the Wild Wood, they were forced to continue on foot. Douxie hadn't been sure how much of Merlin's insistence that he remained in the castle during Arthur's hunt was worry for him (he hoped it was at least 20%. Maybe even 30% worry), but after being rebuffed yet again, Douxie felt himself deflate. No, Merlin was just worried about keeping Arthur from dying in this new timeline.

"Okay, good chat, sir!" Archie said after Merlin's retreating figure, as he sprang up onto Douxie's shoulder. The familiar's voice was resigned, but not so much as it would become. Archie had always been the master of sarcasm, but now, in the 1200s, he hadn't had as long to get weary. His voice would get less optimistic over the centuries.

"Forget him," Douxie told him and Claire, who stood nearby. "Stick to the plan. I'll take the king."

"I'll cover Morgana," Claire locked eyes with him. She looked just as at ease in her medieval dress as she did in her battle armor, and her eyes were steel. She was perhaps the most dedicated of all of them, even so far removed from her home. The only thing she'd freaked out about so far was how close Jim had repeatedly come to dying. Yes, she also had been rather derisive of Morgana, not that Douxie could blame her.

"And let's just focus on getting these royal siblings to hug and make up." Archie said, as Douxie dismounted. Ahead of them, Arthur was heading into the misty Wild Wood like the whole thing would collapse on him any second, and Morgana entered with a straight back, at ease in the murmuring whispers of ancient, primal magic.

"And not die," Claire added.

Archie hesitated, but then amended, "Uh, yes, that too."

"That goes for you, too, Douxie," Claire said, dismounting herself. Douxie looked back at her, taken off guard, only to have Archie nod vehemently in agreement.

"I'm not sure what you mean," he protested, but she just stepped closer.

"Oh, come on," Claire flicked a finger toward his chest, and the mostly covered onyx shard. "Maybe it's better now, like you said, but you're still flagging. Don't think I haven't noticed. I've seen you at the end of an 8 hour shift at the restaurant, without having broken a sweat. But now we're out here for half an afternoon, and you're lagging behind!"

From his shoulder, Archie head-butted him. "She's right, you know. Even my Douxie has better stamina than you, right now. Don't push it."

Douxie scrubbed a hand through his hair, still not used to the bun he once again wore. He'd been trying not to think about how easily he ran out of breath. "Yeah, yeah." But Claire and Archie were still staring at him, so he softened a bit. "Thanks, Claire." And he reached up to give Archie a gentle scratch.

She smiled back at him. They hadn't exactly had much interaction since the Battle of the Bands back in Arcadia, before she'd gone with Jim to help Merlin. She'd grown into herself even more since back then. Her magic was more controlled, felt more like her own. And he was still in awe of what he'd seen her pull off at the bridge to get the trolls out of the castle. That took some impressive magical prowess to pull off, especially without a staff or an arcane focus like his vambrace. He was suddenly really glad she was here with him.

Then they split, off into the misty Wild Wood, to try and coerce their respective royal sibling.

///

So the process of keeping Arthur from dying was hampered somewhat by the subordinate process of trying to keep him from murdering every troll in the forest. Somewhere in pursuit of those processes, Douxie found himself sprinting after various knights, hoping Claire was having better luck.

As they ran, Douxie lost concentration. Over the centuries, he had gotten decent with his spatial awareness, and didn't bump into things _half_ as often as he used to. Archie had made him run homemade obstacle courses in random trashyards or down alleyways, and as much as Douxie hated it, it had helped him stop stumbling as frequently. That tended to be important while running for his life from a magical monster that was _slightly_ out of his ability level, or from superstitious medievals.

But now, his breath burning in his lungs and pain spiking every so often from his chest, Douxie apparently reverted to his 1200th century—aka clumsy—ways, and one of the ubiquitous tree roots took him by surprise.

The ground rushed up at him, and he couldn't catch himself in time.

The impact was uncomfortable, but nothing compared to a burst of _agony_ that ripped through him as the onyx shard was struck, and Douxie, managing to push himself onto his elbows, felt his limbs tense and briefly slip out of his control. A burst of tainting magic spread through him, whiting out his senses with a long, out of tune ringing.

"Douxie!" Archie came up beside him within a moment, worried eyes seeking his.

He could only breathe for a second, finding no energy to speak. The magic from the shard had subdued some, but his chest was still throbbing with pain. For a moment, when the foreign magic had overwhelmed him, Douxie had felt strangely… distant. Disconnected. Like he had been thrown from his own head and his magic replaced with something else—something stronger, some twisted version of the knight's magic that the shard was trying to corrupt him with.

"Douxie?" His familiar shifted to his dragon form, and crept under his outstretched arm, taking some of Douxie's weight.

"I'm… okay," he managed to respond after a second. He blinked away the lingering taint of the magic, and tried to ignore how he still felt _off_ , his own magic staticky in the aftermath of having the shard coming to life again. "Yes, I definitely believe you," Archie muttered, "Since you were so obviously in pain and your magic turned blood red for a moment. Absolutely alright. Should've guessed."

Douxie couldn't help but grin at him, and with Archie's help, he sat up. His balance was thrown off for a moment, but he managed to keep himself upright.

"Maybe you _should_ have let future Merlin put you in stasis," Archie said. "Or we could go ask him _now_ , while your friends fix the timeline."

Douxie gave him a flat look.

"Yes, I'm aware it was a longshot," Archie responded. He shifted back to his cat form and curled up against his side. "But maybe we should just sit out the rest of the day."

"No," Douxie forced himself to stand up. "We're definitely not doing that."

"Right, why would you do the smart course of action, when there's a reckless and self-sacrificial one you could take instead?"

Douxie reached down to pet him, and tried to make his voice reassuring. "I am fine, Arch. I will be. Merlin will take care of it. He's never let us down, now has he?"

For a long moment, Archie didn't answer.

Douxie knew what _his_ Archie would've said in response to this question. But this wasn't quite _his_ Arch.

"No, he has not. It's still my job first, though."

He grinned at his familiar. "And I appreciate it. You've kept me alive too many times to count."

"I may be good at it, but that doesn't mean I appreciate you making it harder," Archie quirked an eyebrow at him, and they shared a smile. When Douxie could take a deep breath without feeling a stab of pain, he nodded to his familiar, and they headed back off into the woods.

He couldn't keep himself from thinking, however, of what _his_ Archie would've said. They'd never doubted, the two of them, that Merlin would come back. Centuries went by, with no sign. But they kept the course. They had waited and waited, and figured out a way forward, just the two of them. And that wasn't a failure—it wasn't. Douxie knew why it had been so long. He didn't hold it against Merlin. But Arch had developed an edge sometime over those centuries—or maybe he'd always had it, and it only showed itself over those years alone. He'd never said anything, but you couldn't keep a secret between familiars.

Douxie knew some part of _his_ Archie had stopped expecting Merlin back. This Archie hadn't had to face those centuries. Douxie himself was trying very hard not to acknowledge any seed of doubt within him of Merlin's abilities. As always, he just had to trust Merlin. He could do that.

///

Unfortunately, meddling always ended up backfiring. Douxie hadn't been invited on this particular hunt, or even one like it, 900 years before. Morgana had turned, yes, but he hadn't been there to see it, in his memory. He hadn't (indirectly) been the cause of it. And as much as it twisted him, Douxie couldn't blame Morgana. Especially since it was Jim at the end of Arthur's sword—the Trollhunter still obeying Douxie's order to not summon his sword or use the amulet, but caught off guard and haggard after a nonstop chase through the Wild Woods. Jim had gotten the attention of the knights to save another troll, and now Morgana turned on Arthur to save Jim. Douxie would've done the same thing.

That being said, he was not prepared for the strength of her shadow copies. Even Merlin was having difficulties combating her: the copies never flinched, never tired, held shape only so much as pleased Morgana. Douxie had never regretted more that he couldn't use shadow magic. Maybe then he could've dispelled her magic, made her listen to reason, _something._

But he didn't, and she didn't stop, and it spiraled out of control. It wasn't Arthur cast down—it was Merlin's other apprentice. The closest thing Douxie had ever had to a sister. She seemed young, scared, as she tumbled off the cliff. Douxie's stomach dropped away as she did. A part of him shattered in her absence.

The weight of failure was familiar, but this was somehow worse. Merlin and Arthur were hollowed out. The time map was ringing in alarm, a shrill warning note of how fractured the timeline had become.

And it was here that Douxie knew, finally _knew_ , why Merlin said to never mess with time. It was so much worse than he could've imagined.

///

The seas and skies seemed to echo their mood as they made their way to the ship. Except for Steve, of course, who was excited out of his mind to go on "a quest," they were all somber as they boarded the sleek ship and Merlin set them off onto the open ocean. Douxie had never been to the Lady of the Lake before, and he wasn't sure how long it would take. His master had barely spoken a word to him outside of his order to gather up Excalibur and his agreement to let them come. Douxie was still astonished he'd agreed in the first place, but that buoyant feeling of being chosen didn't last long in the face of the broken timeline they faced.

The seas were choppy, and the water below them seemed bottomless, violent. Morgana had disappeared into these waves just a day prior, but it seemed much longer. Douxie was certainly tired enough that it felt like it should've been longer.

Similarly, Claire seemed listless. She clutched Morgana's shadowmancy book to in her hands and stood at the railing, eyes unfocused. Douxie made his way over to her, unable to bear Merlin's stony silence and Steve's mindless babble.

Claire glanced at him just briefly before looking back out at the water. "Do you think Merlin's plan will work?"

Mirroring her position, Douxie placed the time map on the railing. It was perpetually cool under his touch, and the magic energy leaking from it was discordant, agitated. He'd royally screwed up the timelines so badly that the map kept shuddering and flickering as the changes cascaded upon each other, probably making a worse and worse future with every passing second. "I messed up the timelines," he muttered. "We've run out of options, and my choices haven't exactly worked out lately." Douxie should've known better. He'd managed to keep himself and Arch alive for 900 years, but he was still far from a Master Wizard. Merlin was right. "We can't make any more mistakes."

Steve made his way over to them too, uncharacteristically silent. He'd either been reprimanded once too many or had been struck with a silencing spell by Merlin.

"We'll have to trust Merlin this time." Douxie finished, feeling like that was the mantra of his life.

"I just hope Jim made it out safe," Claire said.

Douxie gave her a soft smile. "I'm sure he's nestled safely in the bosom of friendly Trolls."

Steve immediately started giggling, and Douxie rolled his eyes. Merlin _should've_ put a silencing spell on him. "Bosom." Steve laughed, and Douxie whacked him.

"You've got a very rude awakening in for you, Steve," Archie, overcoming his unease about the ocean to also give Steve a disdainful look. "Sure, this is a quest, but are you sure you're ready for it? Have you ever even seen a quasit? Or come face to face with an ankheg?"

Steve stood up taller, and Douxie suppressed a grin. "Are we gonna have to fight those? Sounds _awesome_! The other knights can't call me lame if I've knocked out whole legions of monsters!"

"Oh, poor Steve," Archie's tail was twitching in amusement. "That's cute. Legions of quasits? That's child's play. No, I'm sure Merlin is taking us past the Isles of Eternal Torment and through the Straits of Screaming. What you have to worry about is how you'll react to your deepest, darkest fears coming after you."

"Yeah," Douxie said, "I hear that they overhear what you're afraid of and send dark spirits to torment you with your worst nightmares."

"I-I don't _have_ any fears!" Steve stuttered, but he looked a lot less confident about it. Douxie glanced at Claire, and winked at her. The growing frown she was wearing disappeared, and she instead grinned back.

Claire poked Steve to get his attention. "Not even of Coach finding out about the time you spray painted—"

With a loud yell, Steve reached over and clamped a gauntlet over her mouth. "Nah-nah-nah! Ix-nay on the second spray-painting incident! No, there's no deep dark fears over here! You hear me, dark spirits?!" Steve glanced out over the water and back, as though expecting figures to appear. "Nooo dark secrets here! No nightmares of father figures finding out my worst mistake!"

Douxie reached behind him and ruffled Steve's hair, sending the wannabe knight screaming and flinching away across the ship—"Please don't kill me!"—and then dove behind one of the boxes of supplies on board.

He looked quite unimpressed as Douxie, Archie, and Claire started laughing.

It hadn't lessened the growing tension Douxie felt, nor the reality of the broken sword he carried, but it was enough to distract himself from the many mistakes he'd made so far.

///

Douxie was used to waiting. He'd been prepared to wait however long it took Merlin to convince Nimue—as disappointed as he was that he'd been shunted to the side once again, waiting for Merlin was as natural as breathing. He could wait for him to come back. It would happen eventually.

But Claire and Steve—and this Archie—were not as used to it. Steve quickly got depressed and anxious without something to fight or somewhere to go, and while it was quite amusing to watch him pointlessly attack Lock and Latch, Douxie agreed this was taking longer than expected. Maybe he was too used to waiting for Merlin—so he turned to Claire.

Douxie had seen the power of shadowmancy; had seen _her_ power. It was simple enough to guide her through summoning a portal—he'd been given enough magic lessons and done enough self-study to adapt the arcane mumbo-jumbo from the book to words she could grasp. And though there was a terrifying moment when the magic consumed her before she was ready, when Claire reappeared, it was with a spark in her eyes: her confidence was back. Douxie hadn't felt so accomplished in a while.

And it turned out, they were right to think it had taken Merlin too long. Nimue was _not_ the serene goddess that mythology would come to paint her out to be. Wouldn't be the first time Douxie faced off against a monster of immeasurable power with no plan in his back pocket.

///

As Merlin prepared the ship to once again set off to sea, Claire found him. Merlin had given him back Excalibur to hold, and he couldn't stop glancing at it. The blade was almost exactly as it had always been—a few new cracks, but just as gleaming, holding the same quiet power. The golden magic hummed from it so quietly he could only really hear it when he listened for it. Douxie remembered how that hum had become a crescendo when Arthur used it against Morgana the day before. Pure and powerful, and the magic was restored because of _him_. Douxie almost couldn't believe it.

"That was pretty impressive back there, Teach," Claire said, settling down beside him by the railing. She held her shoulders a little differently, now. Douxie was glad she'd been able to find some confidence in her shadowmancy. She was a natural at it, really.

"'Teach'? Is that going to be a thing, now?"

"Yep," Claire grinned at him. "I'm gonna try and get Steve to do it too, if he ever stops fawning over his 'quest souvenir'." She rolled her eyes at where Steve was, indeed, recounting a completely false account about taking down "a lakemonsterlady" to Archie, who looked like he was considering jumping into the ocean as an escape. Douxie made a mental note to get his familiar some roasted salmon after this.

"I guess I can live with that," Douxie responded.

"Good, 'cuz you're gonna teach me the rest of this too," Claire said, and dropped Morgana's shadowmancy tome in his lap.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, did I not mention the part where I'm terrible at shadowmancy?" He tried to give it back to her, but she just shoved it back into his hands.

"Didn't stop you from helping me to make a portal!"

"And I'm glad that worked out! But do you seriously want _me_ to teach you? I may be able to read it, but that doesn't mean much." Douxie felt very small under her intense gaze. He'd been reminded repeatedly recently that 900 years hadn't changed much. His younger self was a goof—an earnest one, sure, but a goof nonetheless. All of his failures so far just made him realize how far he still had to go to earn his staff. To make Merlin look at him with pride. The surprise in his eyes when Douxie had given him the restored Excalibur was progress, but not success.

"There's no one else I'd rather ask," Claire said, unwavering. "And besides, Merlin is too busy brooding, and I doubt Steve will have the time of day for anyone besides Lancelot."

Douxie had to smile at that. "You're not wrong. …Okay, I'll help."

Claire whooped, but Douxie quieted her with a raised hand. "One condition." She nodded. "You let me collab with you, Mary, and Darci when we get back to the present. Battle of the Bands was so rudely interrupted."

Claire broke out in a bigger smile. "That's the cheapest price for private tutoring I've ever heard! You've got yourself a deal!" She stuck out a hand, and they shook on it.

The waves seemed less sinister, now, though Douxie knew that was just his imagination. They were the same as they had been on the way out—it was _him_ who felt lighter. The time map was quiet, in his pocket. Excalibur gleamed in the weak sun. Something inside him had regained a tenuous hold on hope.

"Douxie…" Claire spoke up again after a minute. He turned to look at her. She was staring at her hands in her lap, not at the endless sea nor Steve's pantomime of Nimue. "Do you really think we'll make it back to the present? All of us?"

Douxie bit his lip.

"…Yeah, I do," he said, but he was looking down at the onyx shard. When he was still, the shard was almost unnoticeable. _Almost._ He looked back at Merlin, for a moment. His master was silent at the helm, inscrutable as usual despite the slow motion of his hand, stroking his beard. It was his _Don't-bother-me,-I'm-thinking,-Hisirdoux!_ pose. Douxie hoped he was thinking of more ways to fix the timeline. "It's maybe not going to be easy, but we will. We'll meet back up with Jim, and make sure Killahead happens as history recounts. Then we can use the time map and find another magical conduit to summon another portal to our time."

"Just like that?" Claire asked.

"Well, no," Douxie admitted, looking back at her. "No plan is ever flawless. We'll have to improvise a little, probably. But that doesn't mean we're not up to it."

"So just minimal improvising, but otherwise, just like that." Douxie was pretty sure Claire was making fun of him, but he still took a moment to respond.

"…Okay, on second thought, don't hold me to that. It's probably going to be lots of improvisation, if my track record is anything to go by." Douxie amended, and Claire laughed at him. "Sure, Teach. But you are right; we're up for it!"

Behind them, there was a _splash_ , and Steve let out a wail. "My lakemonsterlady tooth!"

Douxie rolled his eyes, and tapped his vambrace before Steve could do something stupid like jump off the ship after it. " _Capio incustoditum,_ " he incanted, and the tooth emerged from the water, supported by Douxie's blue magic. Steve grabbed for it desperately, and hugged it to his chest. "Thanks, Teach!"

Claire threw a glare at him. "Hey! Only I get to call him that. Get your own mentor!"

Douxie raised his eyebrow at her, but couldn't help smiling. He'd never expected to get to be friends with her and Jim and the others so involved with Arcadia's interaction with the world of magic. He was supposed to keep incognito, as Arch reminded him often. So, he'd observed from afar instead of directly talking to her when he noticed her obvious magical power, or one of the several times he'd nearly run into Jim on his Trollhunting patrols. But it was really nice to hang around with them, these humans who had been brought so deeply into magic and Camelot and yet hadn't blinked. Arcadians sure were resilient when faced with impossibilities.

She and Steve bickered most of the way back to Camelot, with Archie piping up every once in a while to add a sarcastic comment. Douxie spent most of it laughing at their antics, and glancing at Excalibur in his lap. He didn't look at the time map, not once. And he even caught Merlin hiding a chuckle once or twice.

...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N:** I couldn't write anything for the Nimue scene because it is already *chef's kiss* p e r f e c t i o n
> 
> Like legitimately go back and rewatch episode 4 I promise it won't disappoint there's so many little scenes that I just can't get over what an episode my goSH (like seeing Archie use his fire to speed the little boat out of Nimue's attacks! And steve calling merlin "merl" I DIED)
> 
> .
> 
> so, this chapter is a little shorter! but i didn't want it to get too long and i have a vague outline for the rest of the fic now so this was the best place to end this chapter so the next part doesn't get too long.
> 
> this is the most motivated i've been for a fic in a long time (it's probably half because i get to rewatch wizards while i write this) sooooo hopefully i can keep updating in a reasonable amount of time
> 
> .
> 
> thanks for all the kudos and comments!! they mean so so much and i'm really glad you're liking the fic so far
> 
> again, some dialogue is straight from the show, but not as much this chapter. instead, i replaced it with D&D references


	4. Chapter 4

Teaching Claire ended up being the right decision for more than one reason: It meant they got confirmation that Morgana was still alive. And that was simultaneously a good thing and a terrible thing. On the one hand, it meant maybe the future wasn't as terribly askew as it could have been. On the other, it _absolutely_ meant that she was going to meddle somehow and probably try to kill them all and definitely try to kill Arthur.

Convincing Merlin of her existence was a harder matter, however. Merlin was caught up once again in creating the Trollhunter amulet, and Douxie could recognize the distracted air his master strode around in. With the immediate problem of Excalibur taken care of, his project had once again consumed him. Whenever Merlin got like this and Douxie kept bugging him, it inevitably ended up with—yep. The magic muzzles. Again. They could breathe fine, even though Claire looked concerned and shocked. Douxie always hated these things. But he eventually managed to get himself and Claire free to speak again. It just meant they wouldn't be able to rely on Merlin to help out unless they got real proof of Morgana's involvement.

And on top of that, with the war looming ever closer, Arthur decided to hold a tournament. Douxie wasn't particularly surprised. That was basically the king's go-to at literally any point in Camelot's history. It was inconvenient, but honestly he should've expected it. And anyway, he hadn't seen a good tournament in centuries—not that Steve made much of a fighter… but the portions he got to see weren't the worst tournament he'd ever seen.

So he and Claire hopped between the castle and tournament all day, and even though throwing all the wards around did strain his chest a little bit, he pushed through. Doing anything productive felt good, when he knew that the time map still rang off-tune up in Merlin's study. By midafternoon, it had tired him out more than it should have, but no one needed to know that.

Archie as a halftime entertainment for the tournament was thoroughly degrading for his familiar, but the true upset came when Claire appeared to fight the Knight of Skulls. It did put her in the best position to stop the changeling from assassinating Arthur, however. But not even that could be easy: right before nightfall, the walls were breached with dworkstone, and though his wards contained the explosions, it wasn't quite sufficient. Of course things just had to get worse. He and Claire sprinted back to the castle, to get Merlin and his past self out. Douxie felt a little bad about cutting of his younger self playing the _Rose of Ambrosius_ , but the early versions weren't as good as they would get. It would get better when he got the electric.

The fight to take out the changeling drained him, but with Merlin's help, they were able to defeat it. And when Douxie stumbled, drained from the fight, Merlin placed a heavy, comforting hand on his shoulder. The look in his eyes might've been pride. It might've been worry for how much Douxie was drooping, but he hoped it was pride. And Steve even got his knighthood.

The day was turning out better than he could've hoped: Arthur would be forced to ask the trolls for help. The battle for Killahead was approaching. And maybe, just maybe, it would happen the way history recorded, and the timeline would harmonize again.

///

Dwoza was beautiful: magic humming from the gems and the various magical inhabitants of the underground. The trolls were uneasy with the presence of the humans, but the gnomes were fascinated with their shiny armor. Jim and Claire may have gotten used to trolls and humans getting along in Arcadia, but Douxie had seen firsthand how long the tension between magic and humans had existed to know that even their presence in Dwoza was a miracle. Especially given the recent hostility of Camelot. He tried to appreciate the view of the town and be as respectful as possible.

It was the only thing he could really do to keep from fixating on the nerve-inducing debate between Arthur and Vendel. From their stances, it wasn't going great… but at least they were talking. That was a step in the right direction.

But Jim spoke the doubts in Douxie's own mind: "You really think they can work this out?"

"They have to. Or else everyone in Camelot and Dwoza are doomed." Douxie said, biting his lip. He itched to go over and listen in on the conversation, to actually know how it was going, but he restrained himself. Arthur's knights weren't letting anyone get close.

"Then so is saving history. Great." Claire finished.

"I assure you, all will be fine once I've completed my amulet," Merlin strode toward them, voice raised. He eyed Jim with a critical eye. "So, this is the once and future Trollhunter I've heard of."

Jim grinned awkwardly back. He seemed uneasy in Merlin's presence. But he had done good work among the trolls of Dwoza. They just had to hope that his friendliness was enough to get the residents of Dwoza over their passivity. "Is there a reason we're not using my… my amulet from the future to seal the bridge?" He asked, voice pitched low, glancing between Merlin and Douxie. "I get that the amulet will still need to be made and Deya chosen and all that, but… couldn't _I_ just close it?"

He held up his hands in surrender when both Douxie and Merlin immediately shook their heads. Merlin, eyebrows drawn into a critical glare, opened his mouth to probably list in excruciating detail and incomprehensible jargon as to why not, so Douxie jumped in. "Think of it like this," he said. "The timeline is fragile enough as it is. The past amulet needs to be the one to do this. If you do it, the first Trollhunter won't have a claim to fame; won't pass it on to the next trollhunter and the next one after that. So then, _you_ won't ever get the amulet, meaning you can't have taken it back in time to stop Killahead." Jim's eyes were starting to glaze over, so Douxie grinned at him. "It's like a house of cards. The fewer changes, the better."

"And that means not even _using_ your amulet, young Trollhunter," Merlin said, taking the floor back. "Historically, only one Trollhunter existed at the battle of Killahead. It shall remain that way. You'll have to fight with normal weapons like the rest of the trolls and knights."

Jim sighed at that, but Claire just elbowed him. "Like you even need your sword, Jim. You can take care of yourself without it." He smiled back at her. "I guess I can make do."

Merlin nodded at him, and strode off. The knights didn't dare stop _him_ from approaching close enough to overhear the conversation between Arthur and Vendel. Douxie tried not to pout at the reminder.

"Wow, he really hasn't changed in 900 years at all," Jim said, watching after Merlin and shaking his head.

Douxie laughed quietly. "Yeah. He gets a little less intimidating after you've spent years scrubbing his floors and a couple centuries waiting around for him." As though sensing he was being talked about, Merlin glanced in their direction, and he and Jim froze. When his gaze had drifted back to Arthur, Douxie muttered, "A _little_ less intimidating."

"I'm glad he's on our side," Claire said. "Morgana was more than enough to handle. No more evil wizards for me, thank you."

"Seconded," Jim said. "And anyway, he's enough to deal with, even if he is _helping_. I wish I'd known more about him back when we fought Morgana. I couldn't really see him as a person then—just a scary smart wizard."

"I've never known him to admit to a mistake," Douxie shook his head. He tried not to think of all the times he'd imagined Merlin apologizing for being gone so long over the centuries. It was probably more outlandish of a fantasy than his hopes to be awarded his staff after 900 years. "But I'm still not sure if that's just because he's too proud, or if he just hasn't made any."

The whisper of his master's magic grew in volume for a moment, and a flash of green magic emanated from Merlin's staff—one of the ubiquitous gnomes had tried to sneak up on one of Arthur's knights, and was summarily blasted away without Merlin having to look in its direction. He, Jim, and Claire all shuddered. "Okay, yeah, he's just never made any." Douxie said.

"When do we get to _that_ lesson?" Claire asked, grinning. "I want to get so good that people think I'm basically infallible."

"I'll let you know when I get there," Douxie said, laughing. "But maybe that's just a Merlin thing."

"I don't know, you've got a pretty cool aura yourself, Teach," Claire said. Jim nodded. "You had quite the reputation in Arcadia."

Douxie suppressed a laugh. "Oh yes, that was absolutely on purpose! My cool aura in Arcadia is definitely _not_ half rumors that Zoe won't stop spreading about me and half my constant excuses to go monster-hunting instead of doing normal teenager things."

The other two glanced at him in surprise, Jim's eyes lighting up in confusion and Claire's in laughter. "You mean you don't actually have a band?" she asked.

"Oh, no, I definitely do," Douxie reassured her, "But I'll admit to having… _exaggerated_ some things to get a reputation around Arcadia. It's just easier to remain under the radar for being magical if you convince everyone that you're definitely just working as a waiter til your band takes off. Or at least, that's the best cover story Archie and I can come up with." He scrubbed a hand through his hair.

"Should I have just pretended to be in a band to deflect suspicion about being the Trollhunter?" Jim asked, and Claire laughed at him. "That could have solved so many problems…"

"I _am_ actually in a band!" Douxie insisted.

"Maybe you should've gone with a fake cooking club instead of a fake band, Jim," Claire said, smile growing. "That would have been much more believable for you."

"Oh, yeah," Jim said, smiling back at her. " _Arcadia's Top Teen Chef_! Haven't you heard of it? Their lessons are really intense and scheduled at really random times to prepare their students for the real world."

"And all the students carry around meat cleavers the size of broadswords," Claire added.

"And have to wear full plate armor! To… prepare them for… for the crushing weight of responsibility!" Jim fumbled, but the last of his words were swallowed in laughter.

Some of the trolls nearby were starting to glance over in their direction as Jim and Claire kept chuckling, and Douxie apologetically waved at the glaring trolls. "Maybe I need to add bluffing onto your lesson plan, so you can teach your boyfriend how to deflect suspicion," he suggested.

"He's never been very good at it," Claire said, at the same time Jim protested, "Hey, I did okay!"

Douxie and Claire laughed at his offended gasp. The Trollhunter immediately launched into a defense of the time he passed off the armor as a costume, with Claire nodding along, unconvinced, at him. Douxie couldn't help grinning at them. He was suddenly sad that he hadn't had much time to get to know them back in Arcadia before everything changed with the eclipse.

His smile faded. Unfortunately, they didn't have forever, now. But maybe once they got back to the present, Douxie would get to hang out with them again like this.

///

Douxie helped Merlin with the lightshow to convince the trolls. He'd grown more comfortable with the time map after carrying it around for so long, and it took hardly a thought to encourage its low hum to increase to a bright glow, which then formed the shapes of the amulet and a facsimile of the battle at Killahead. Merlin's loud voice carried throughout Dwoza, laying out the plan. The trolls listened attentively, if doubtfully.

While Douxie and Merlin finished the amulet, Steve and Lancelot would train the trolls. Douxie felt a surge of pity for those poor trolls that would have to deal with Steve's fake karate moves and unrealistic expectations. But he didn't have to worry about that part.

"It seems we may have a shot at surviving this after all," Archie said. Douxie exchanged a glance with him, feeling hopeful himself. Even having a chance was more than Douxie had expected a day ago, so he would take it.

"One shot is the best I can offer." Merlin stood beside them, face grave. Douxie stood up straighter at his tone. "When Killahead activates, it shall unleash a surge of magic across the realm."

His master's eyes bored into Douxie's. "Just enough to power the Heart of Avalon for a trip through time!" Douxie finished for him, nodding.

Merlin's face remained stoic, unwavering. "But only _one_ , which means everything must go according to my plan. Hisirdoux, with me. I need your assistance." Douxie tried not to think about how much that small comment meant to him, as he waved goodbye to the others and followed his master. Finally, Merlin needed him.

///

Making the amulet was arduous. Merlin had finished the design, and, as usual, had a "perfect" plan down to the last, tiniest, minute detail. The metals had to be heated in specific ways, soaked in slorr milk, inscribed with runes made with just the right tool and imbued with perfect arcane incantations. It took time, concentration, and withstanding the hovering and constant corrections of Merlin. (Maybe it was just his imagination, but it seemed his master yelled at him less, now, than when he'd helped with projects like this in the old days. Maybe it was just because it had been so long… but Douxie could hope it meant he was getting better at this.) And Merlin even let him choose the gem which would form the conduit for the amulet. Douxie hadn't expected that, but he wasted no time. Closing his eyes, he strained his ears. Each gem resonated at a different note, each pure and perfect in their own way. But he extended his hand until it rested over the one that didn't harmonize—it _led_ , stood out, clear and enduring.

They used the Medeis Array to hold the gem. It amplified the magic, purified it to strengthen the gem's innate power even more. Douxie still hadn't forgotten how to use it, after all these years. He contained the wave of magical energy as Merlin fueled it, hating how much effort it took him and feeling weak as the shard in his chest throbbed. But he didn't stop.

They continued forging. Using Morgana's severed hand was morbid, but ironic. Douxie even got Merlin to chuckle at his terrible pun.

Before the final step, however, Merlin stepped away from the cauldron.

"To lock the amulet together," Merlin said, striding over to the array. One of its many arms for holding gems and focuses was loose, and he removed it from the apparatus. Now that it was removed, it looked kind of like… "Two Master Wizards are required."

Douxie felt all the breath leave his body.

By his side, Archie muttered, "By Ambrosius' Gleaming…"

Douxie took a scarce step forward. "Is that…"

The light glinted off a circular magical focus, placed at the head of the piece. It was long, and thin, magically treated metal forming a long pole… with… with a handgrip. He scarce dared to say the words out loud. "Is that for me?"

He couldn't interpret Merlin's gaze. He felt like his chest was tight from more than pain or anxiety. Some string deep in his heart was held taut, his breath coming faster.

"Thought you'd make something of it," Merlin said. "You've done great things with less, like that bracelet of yours." Douxie had to remind himself that he wasn't dreaming—he was too tired to be asleep. The words didn't sound real, coming from Merlin, right in front of him.

But this couldn't be. Not after everything that had already happened, just since he came to the past.

"No, I," Douxie said, swallowing hard. "Uh… I can't accept this. I'm not _worthy_." He could feel it, deep in his bones. Someone who doubted this much, who felt this insecure and small, couldn't be worthy of a staff. What had he done to earn it? Goofed around for 900 years, failing to keep the world safe and taking care of tiny monsters? Messing up the timeline within a day of coming to the past? He had strived so long to be a Master Wizard, but now with Merlin offering it to him, it felt wrong. Any bravado he'd had, any confidence in his abilities he'd developed over the centuries had vanished in the face of Merlin's return.

"That humility is exactly why it belongs to you." Merlin caught his gaze, and his voice held no uncertainty. His face was set, with a slight encouraging tilt of his mouth. The tight feeling inside him didn't ease, but Douxie took a deep breath.

Even if Douxie didn't believe it himself, he could believe Merlin, right? He had to; it was the only thing that had gotten him this far. And while he couldn't fathom what had changed, why Merlin thought him worthy now… Douxie could do that. He could trust Merlin. Wasn't that the real, first lesson? Even before 'don't mess with time'. _Trust Merlin._

So he took a deep breath, and called for his magic.

It sprang to life with eager notes, swirling out of his vambrace and immediately seeking out the staff in Merlin's hands. The staff itself began to resonate, as it flew out of Merlin's grasp. The rising tone of the staff's magic came to meet the pitch of his own, and it floated towards Douxie. Its arcane focus glimmered, reflecting the light of his magic, and glowing from within with its own power. He couldn't put an instrument to it—but the low music that made up its magic signature was bright, with a quick tempo. The kind of song he'd always enjoyed playing on his lute.

It settled into his hand like it belonged there. And, with the clinking of the vambrace's runes spinning, the staff rang in unison with Douxie's magic, and vanished into his vambrace.

Douxie didn't feel any more powerful, any different. He didn't feel like a Master _anything_. But the magic remained in his grasp, tingling through his fingertips, the powerful arcane focus within his reach. _A real staff_. It settled into his magic like it belonged there, Humming softly, contentedly. Unfamiliar but beautiful to hear.

"Let us finish this, Master Wizard," Merlin said, and Douxie looked up at him.

It didn't feel real.

But that was his voice, addressing Douxie. That was _Merlin's_ unwavering gaze, encouraging him in the light of the new title.

And Douxie couldn't help but smile back.

///

The course of repairing history never could run smoothly, Douxie figured. In the wake of the amulet choosing Callista, they were left with two big problems and an approaching deadline.

Jim caught Douxie's eye. "I think I might know where Callista is going." _And that leaves me with Arthur,_ Douxie thought. So off they split, hoping they could fix this before Killahead, before the impending troll army could destroy the timeline forever.

He hadn't had many interactions with the king. Arthur mostly tolerated him as Merlin's apprentice and called him "boy" or some mangled version of his name—he'd gotten "Halamanth", "Hisirmoth, "Halbalod", and "Hordex", to name a few. But Douxie could relate to his feeling of failure—the same feeling had haunted him this whole trip. Douxie still didn't feel like the staff was his own, but maybe that was okay. Maybe that just meant that he needed to work harder to deserve it. And maybe Arthur just needed to know that he still had the chance to make things right, too.

And thankfully, they weren't alone.

Which was good, because as the sun set, the fight came to them.

///

The Battle of Killahead grew closer and closer with the slow drift of the sun towards the horizon. Douxie could hear the abounding discord of Morgana's magic. She was sustaining the Gumm-Gumm army, adding to their ranks. Her magic rang out from the depths of the shadow, louder and louder as the evening drew in.

Callista had not returned, and the trolls remained in Dwoza, in hiding. Jim had done all he could, and now they just hoped. Hoped they would be enough to hold off Gunmar. And hoped Callista would come back in time to close Killahead, or maybe the amulet would find Deya, wherever she was, and give her the power to do so.

Merlin had prepared what he could, and finished readying Camelot and the Heart of Avalon. Douxie knew that his master was still planning on using the magic unleashed from the sealing of Killahead to power their trip back; and if Merlin was preparing for it, Douxie could hope it would happen.

"Hisirdoux," Merlin said, before the shadows reached the other side of the valley. Morgana's magic still sounded its aria, far-off but threatening. His master's face was perhaps more somber than usual. "Walk with me a moment."

Douxie hurriedly waved off Archie and followed Merlin a few steps into the forest, away from the knights and the Guardians.

"When the Heart of Avalon is activated, you must waste no time in returning to your own time," Merlin said. "I have prepared all I can for it, but there is no telling how much time you will have before the Heart loses power and the rift closes."

"Yes, Master," Douxie said. "We'll get there as fast as we can."

"As such," Merlin continued, as though Douxie hadn't spoken, "I would not count on having time after the battle to relax or say goodbye."

"Don't worry, Master," Douxie replied, grinning. "I already made sure to grab some meat pies before I head back to the future. Modern day just doesn't make them the same."

But then he realized his master had stopped walking. Merlin's eyebrows were lowered, his hands clasped behind his back. He wasn't getting ready to berate Douxie for meaningless priorities or give him yet another admonition on how to properly operate the time map.

"I…" Merlin hesitated, for the briefest of moments. "I have tried to find a way to remove that onyx shard, Hisirdoux." Douxie froze, too. His chest seemed to ache with the reminder. "Of the many magical cures and maladies I have catalogued, none can combat this particular magic. I have tried to find some undocumented way to try and heal this, but…"

Douxie stopped him, before his master could say more. "I know, Master."

Merlin's eyes flew up to his, maybe in surprise. Douxie fancied he could interpret his expression, now: he was… regretful. Apologetic. "You _know_ , Hisirdoux? A Master Wizard for scarcely a day and you already know more than me?"

"No, I…" Douxie laughed, and refused to let the ache in his chest wipe the smile away. "I knew that you didn't have a fix. I could see it in your eyes before all this started. Maybe even back in the present." Merlin said nothing, but his gaze did not waver. Douxie managed to smile wider. "I've made my peace with it, Master. It's more important that we make it back to the future, and preserve the timeline. What happens after that… well, I've gotten pretty good at improvising. I don't need to plan for after that."

Merlin looked at him for a long moment. His expression was once again carefully blank, his eyes giving nothing away. Then, deep in the moment of silence, he reached out, and put a heavy hand on Douxie's shoulder. "You have grown much more than I had thought, my young apprentice. Our job as wizards is to bear those burdens for the sake of the world, and you truly are a Master Wizard if you understand that."

The words meant more than the staff did. Douxie tried to reply, to find some way to thank him, but the words caught in his throat. And a shout rang out—one of the lookouts had seen the first enemy. Behind them, the trolls had begun gathering across the valley as the shadows lengthened. Douxie looked back at his master, and then nodded. He turned and went to gather Jim, Claire, and Steve. They were as ready as they were going to get.

///

Merlin watched his apprentice head toward the battle, shoulders drawn back and head high. Douxie looked no different than his past self, besides the dyed hair, but it was clear from everything else about him how much his apprentice had grown. He had somehow missed the renewed confidence in the set of his shoulders, the easy way that he encouraged the Guardians, who looked to him for instruction and encouragement, visibly brightened in his attention. He had always been anxious and eager to please, but his magical potential was such that Merlin had to take him as apprentice. That potential had flourished, grown into daring and conviction, but it had not dulled his compassion nor his bright spirit. He had glossed over the boy's determination as foolish. And though it looked pretty similar to foolishness, Merlin could see it was more than that. Juxtaposed against the apprentice back in Camelot, Douxie was indubitably the Master Wizard whom Merlin had always known he would become.

"But suddenly, I wish you did not have to bear this burden, Hisirdoux," Merlin said, to the empty grove. It struck him to the quick to think of how far Douxie had come, and to not know if the boy would get to return to the future and prove it.

He just had to hope that his future self would discover some other way to remove the onyx shard.

In the meantime, a rather important battle was to take place. History would remember this day fondly, and Merlin intended to make sure it went as planned. Not just for the timeline, but for these foolish, young Guardians, and for his appren—for Hisirdoux, Master Wizard.

...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N:** guys i'm seriously so blown away by your support of this fic!!! thank you all SO MUCH for the kudos and comments I'm so so glad that you're enjoying this.
> 
> sorry about the delay in getting this up! i've messed with this chapter so much and i still don't love it but i wanted to get it out asap.
> 
> .
> 
> as per usual, I don't own all this dialogue! I kept the staff scene because it's so important for douxie's character and all of that dialogue is straight from the show.
> 
> .
> 
> also i hope no one can tell but i know /nothing/ about music so all of the talk of magic as music is me making it up :D


	5. Chapter 5

They left Claire and Jim to hold the bridge—Jim clearly itching to summon his sword but obeying and still making quick work of the enemies with one of their pilfered glaives—as Douxie, Merlin, and Archie went after Morgana. It was too early in the battle to tell how it would go, but Douxie stamped down on the part of him that wanted to stay. He and Merlin had to take care of Morgana. Her magic was even stronger than before, the music emanating from her staff screeching in their ears and too loud to ignore. The chase through the woods just showed how dark her magic had become, and they got off to a bad start as Morgana bound them and hurt Merlin before Douxie drove her off. But even as Merlin clutched his side, he extended a scroll, and warned him for the future—he, of course already had a plan in place. Douxie saw the sketches for the tomb he had powered all those centuries ago. This would be past-Douxie's job, then.

They followed Morgana to the cave, where the creepy skull castle which would become the flying machine of the Arcane Order lay, unfinished, malicious, and Douxie stopped, his blood running cold. Here was how Morgana came back. He could see the puzzle pieces fitting together, now. But he had no time to ponder: it took his and Merlin's combined strengths to take care of Morgana's strengthened shadow copy. He knew they didn't have time for this, but there was no choice: Morgana's copy was deadly and maybe if they could stop it, they could stop her.

But when she herself returned, she was somehow more powerful than before; grief-stricken and furious. Her magic was louder, even more erratic. Her words sent a spike through him and shook Merlin: but the knowledge of Arthur's demise was similarly shunted aside. Because they could do nothing; not go back to try and turn the tide, not see if Callista had returned. Not while Morgana assailed them, and his master still stumbled. Douxie centered himself here, refused to let himself think about Killahead or anything beyond the next attack.

"Little Douxie gets his staff, just in time to die with it!" Morgana's voice was cruel, her words sharper than her summoned blade. But she was right—he couldn't wield it. It didn't feel normal, took extra effort and thought. He wasn't used to it; the raw power it gave him didn't help much when he was so used to fighting with just his vambrace. He'd never had the ability, like Merlin did, to weave whole songs together in combat. Just the right note at the right time to end a battle. But Morgana's power was loud, haunting, and he couldn't find a break in it, or in her defense. He frantically dodged and deflected, no time to fight back or block, just flinch away and wait for an opening he didn't know was coming. He was just about despairing when Merlin yelled some encouragements from where he was bound, and one phrase bounced around in his head. _Make the staff your own._

So Douxie did.

He stopped trying to work with what he _had_ —the unfamiliar, unwieldy staff that he frantically copied Merlin's moves with—and centered himself. _Make it my own._ He closed his eyes briefly, and stopped working with what he had.

Instead, he extended his senses out, and reached for what felt normal. What felt natural. Something he'd always had and which he knew he could use.

Morgana crashed against the other wall, struck dumb for a moment.

"Did you just strike me with a-a-a _lute_?"

Douxie felt _whole_ , holding his electric in his hands, magic and music combined in a way he'd never had the chance to create before. He knew how to use the axe, how it felt in his hands. Its music didn't need extra casting or incantations: just a thought, like with his vambrace. He grinned back at her.

The battle passed in a blur, but Douxie didn't stumble. He moved on instinct, on reflex. He knew what they needed to do and got ready to set Merlin up for the sealing spell.

Even this far in the past, he could still count on Arch, and their routines. Before they'd had Merlin, they'd had each other, and their tricks, to survive. It was a familiar song and dance: Archie provided the flames to distract, then they split—Arch to feint from one side, and Douxie to attack from the other. It was as familiar as it was reliable—and thank Ambrosius for that, since Douxie was flagging: adrenaline and elation at using his staff could only mask the exhaustion and muffled pain ringing from his chest, not remedy it.

" _Sigilia infractum,_ " Douxie repeated Merlin's spell, and finished it too: _"Causera!"_

He'd closed his eyes as he finished the sealing spell, almost didn't think it would work. But Morgana was caught, and Douxie fed more magic into the incantation. The shadow witch spewed threats and magic blasts, but Claire arrived just in time to keep her attacks from landing. She disappeared, a final scream echoing through the cave, knocked into the shadow realm.

And then Douxie fell. His magic energy fled, leaving him cold and empty, and with nothing to combat the pain. But he held it together as Archie supported him, and even managed a high-five with Claire.

Maybe they did actually save history, this time.

///

He'd felt it when the bridge was activated: Merlin's magic and his own, ringing together in the amulet as it sucked away the remnants of shadow magic, audible even from the cave. And then his master's magic, in the familiar heart of Avalon, began to beat again.

So they returned the sleeping Merlin to Camelot, to the care of the frightened-looking past Douxie and the exhausted but grinning Galahad.

And Douxie set the now-quiet time map on the steering post, twisted the axion dial twice, and prepared to open the rift again.

"Everybody, ready yourselves. We don't have much time." He kept his voice even, but Douxie could feel encroaching fear eating at his insides. He didn't know what would happen when they got back. Merlin's words still rang in his ears. And Jim, Claire, and Steve stood behind him, and Douxie so desperately wanted to celebrate with them after this. He'd promised them brunch. "I'll dial us in for when we left."

"But what's gonna happen when we get there?" Claire asked. "The danger we escaped, it'll be waiting for us."

"And you've still got the whosey-whatsit shard," Steve said, and Douxie suppressed a laugh. He hadn't really thought Steve had remembered it.

"That part of history isn't written yet," Douxie muttered, hoping he could convince himself about it too. "There's no reason to fear, nor to hope."

"That's not exactly reassuring, Teach," Claire replied, and her eyes were piercing. She had noticed how long it took him to catch his breath after sealing Morgana. She'd noticed how Archie seemed reluctant to say goodbye even though he had his own Douxie to take care of. "There's always reason to hope," Jim added.

And Claire seemed to notice that Douxie dropped his gaze when Jim said that.

"Teach?"

Douxie turned back to the steering post, steeling himself. "We really should get going," he began, but found Claire accusingly standing beside him.

"Teach, you should know better than to try Merlin's 'keeping things from us for our own good' routine."

"Yeah!" Steve said. "It would be so much better for my grades if the teachers actually told us the stuff that would be on the test. Like, it would be super cool." Jim rolled his eyes at him, "They do, you just sleep in class."

But Douxie couldn't ignore Claire's steady gaze and Jim's honest smile at Steve's spluttering excuses. He sighed, and slumped a little against the steering post.

"There's… not exactly a 'cure' for the onyx shard," Douxie said, slowly. He tried to ignore Claire's gasp and Jim's aborted step forward. Even Steve—who had been the quietest Douxie had ever seen him in the aftermath of the battle, serious and somber at Lancelot's dead side—froze. "Merlin told me before the battle. Returning to the present will give it power again."

"No, Douxie!" Claire grabbed his shoulder, her eyes wide. "That's not going to happen!"

"We'll find something—we always do!"" Jim stepped forward too.

"What if we just stayed," Steve suggested. "It's not doing damage here, right?"

"I promised I would return you home, and I am." Douxie shook his head, taken aback by their combined, loud concern. But he could already hear the burst of magic from Killahead beginning to fade. "We have to go back _now,_ or there won't be a future there at all. This is what it means to be a Master Wizard."

He saw Jim begin to frown, drawn up short, but Claire and Steve just stepped closer. "Then Merlin will just have to put you in stasis," Claire said, "Until we find something! You're not allowed to give up on me. Not when we haven't had our Battle of the Bands re-do."

Jim placed a heavy hand on her shoulder. She quieted, but the Trollhunter just turned to look at him. "I get it, Douxie. But you have to know we're not giving up on _you_. We'll find some way to fix this when we get back to the present."

Douxie had to blink rapidly for a second, but then held out his hand to Jim. "This is our one shot. We're all going back."

"Yeah, we are," Jim said, and clasped his hand. "You're included in that. Trust _us_."

He couldn't respond, just clenched his jaw against protestations and a rebellious, grateful grin. Douxie turned back to the steering post, and activated the Heart.

The gears aligned, and the magic rang in unison with the power from Killahead. A rift burst open in the sky, revealing the tumultuous clouds and the teetering Camelot they'd left days—moments—before. They boarded the ship, Steve helping him over the railing. He set his staff as the steering column, and tilted forward, beginning their ascent back to where they belonged. Jim took a moment at the railing to watch the host below them wave goodbye: Deya, past Douxie, Archie, and all the others too small to make out. But Claire stayed at his side, managing a grin, her eyebrows still drawn low in worry.

Douxie didn't look away from the approaching time rift. He breathed as evenly as he could, and tried to ignore how his knuckles were clenched white around his new staff. The shard felt weighty again. _My burden to bear._

///

Claire was watching Douxie as they flew through the portal. She'd felt like a live wire was placed under her skin since Douxie admitted the shard had no cure, and mentally cursed whatever higher power refused to let them all have a break. She'd finally taken a breath with Morgana being sealed away and with the future again in reach, but now that was gone too. The only thing holding her together at this point was Jim's sympathetic arm around her and Douxie's steadfast expression. He'd gotten them this far. Claire knew he would get them home again.

She just didn't want to know what it would cost him in the process. He was too like Jim in that respect.

So when they passed through the entrance of the portal, and Steve yelled something about twenty-first century air smelling better, "all that pollution!", she was already reaching out for Douxie, even as the shard in his chest flared blood-red and his grip slipped off his staff.

Steve hurriedly grabbed the staff before the ship could go spinning out of control, and Claire caught Douxie by the arm as the wizard crumpled.

Douxie was clenching his jaw so hard she could hear his teeth grinding, but he made no sound, just fell to a knee, eyes squeezed shut as the red magic flared and the shard sunk deeper into him. He'd tried to keep a hold of his staff, keep steering, but it was clear he couldn't maintain his own balance, much less steer the ship. "Hold on, Teach!" They just had to make it to Merlin.

"Oh man, oh man, could this get any worse?" Steve kept the ship steady, but his voice was not, and she knew he'd jinxed them even before they saw Camelot rocket past them.

"Get over there," Douxie muttered, his eyes open just enough to know where to point. He was gesturing toward the castle, and to Claire's horror she saw the Heart of Avalon explode as the castle fell.

Steve nodded solemnly, and, better at it than she'd expected, directed the ship toward the rapidly accelerating Camelot. As they got closer, Jim jumped to the railing and managed to catch Toby as their friend tumbled off the ramparts. "Just in time," Jim said, and Toby yelled back a greeting as they hugged. Through the window, Claire saw the rest of them: Aaarrrgghh, the still injured Blinky, and Merlin. She didn't see Archie move, but she heard the familiar yell Douxie's name, and suddenly she had an armful of dragon-cat pushing between her and Douxie. "But you're trapped in the past!"

"Not anymore," Douxie muttered, managing to bring a hand up to smooth Arch's ears back. His familiar just snuggled closer, however, as the wizard grimaced, the shard flaring again.

"Hisirdoux!" Merlin jumped aboard too, eyes scanning the ship once before deeming Steve's steering adequate, and then he too came to Douxie's side. Thankfully he didn't try any magic again, and Claire let him take over as Douxie crumpled a little further.

"Oh, no!" Toby extracted himself from Jim as he turned to help Blinky aboard, and Claire stopped her friend from rushing to Douxie's side too. "What's happening to him?"

"The shard, it's moving to his heart," Claire told him, biting her lip as she watched Merlin carefully settle Douxie against the side of the ship. She thought he might have mumbled something to his master, but couldn't make out what.

Steve began to move the ship away, but Merlin stopped him with a glare. "We're missing one!"

Before any of them could ask who they could possibly be missing, a high, unfamiliar voice broke through the air. "Merlin!"

A swift green figure launched herself off the study rampart and onto the ship, only kept from knocking Steve over by Aaarrrggh's quick catch. And then they had no time to figure out who that was, as Camelot crumbled around them, and Steve (still screaming) piloted the ship frantically away from the castle.

They landed in the ruins of the school and Camelot. Merlin introduced Nari to them, whose inquisitive, kind eyes glanced around them all, but fixated on the terrifyingly silent Douxie as Aaarrrgghh carefully brought him off the ship. Archie remained curled up at his side, his claws anxiously kneading the ground beneath him, even as he tried to comfort his familiar with a soft rumbling purr. But once they were on the ground, the shard flared again, and this time, Douxie couldn't contain the pain. His yell echoed around the ruins of their school, and Claire ran over to him, grabbing his hand and squeezing, hating how useless she felt.

Nari—her white-green magic springing from her fingertips effortlessly—knelt beside Douxie for a moment. She didn't need to say anything for Claire to read her expression: it was getting worse.

Jim clenched his fists. "There has to be something we can do!" He looked to Merlin, but Claire refused to. He hadn't helped before, how could he help now?

And just as she expected, Merlin somberly shook his head. His face was impassive. But he knelt down at Douxie's side, and grabbed his shoulder. "Hisirdoux," he said, and his apprentice immediately tried to gather himself, tried to look up. "You did the right thing."

Anger rose up within Claire, but before she could yell something about tact to the obviously senile master, an ominous burst of magic came from the sky above them, and Douxie shuddered, yelling out again. "We have to get him out of here!"

"No," Merlin stopped her, and hastily stood. "The shard's creeping towards his heart again!"

But the Arcane Order's ship was approaching, and a malicious, multilayered voice, seemingly comprised of many voices and dripping power, demanded Nari's return.

Jim stood in front of them, and summoned his blade. "Not today, I'm afraid! The Trollhunter is back and this time, I've got my powers."

And Claire, helplessness fueling her rage, stood too. "If you want them, you've gotta get through us!"

Merlin ignited a protective sphere around himself, Nari, and Douxie.

And they ran to meet the Green Knight in battle.

///

Even through the haze of pain that had been tugging at his vision ever since they'd returned to the present, Douxie could see that they were losing.

Outside of Merlin's protective sphere, the others frantically assailed the knight, their attacks seemingly at full power but barely even stumbling the figure. Even as he watched, the knight sent Claire flying through the air with a blast of his twisted yellow magic, and locked blades with Jim, brute strength slamming Jim into the ground, where their blades wavered, locked together and slowly grinding the Trollhunter into the ground.

Douxie forced himself to sit up. At his side, Archie was too busy watching the fight to pay attention, and he was overwhelmed with a sudden urge to pet his familiar, one last time. Draw comfort from the familiar fur of his best friend.

"Hisirdoux," Merlin's voice cut through the cacophony, and Douxie looked up to see his master, still maintaining the protective sphere, looking down at him with an unreadable expression. Nari looked at him too, her inquisitive eyes flicking between master and apprentice.

Douxie refused to be cowed by the implicit order in Merlin's gaze. Merlin reached down, and placed a heavy hand on his shoulder.

"But, Master, I—" Douxie began, only to bite back the words, ducking his head. The pain was making it hard to stay upright; the shard's magic let off a constant shrill shriek in his ears. He could barely take a deep breath now, feeling a sharp stab every time he did.

"Head to HexTech," Douxie looked back at his master, and felt Archie freeze at his side. "Tell Zoe that I sent you… and, I'm sorry."

Several voices called his name, and panic sparked in his veins as his familiar leapt at him, trying to stop him, but Douxie had already lifted a hand and slammed his fist as hard as he could against the shard in his chest.

The effect was immediate, and terrible.

For a scarce second, Douxie felt _nothing_ , nothing at all. When consciousness returned to him, it was all wrong: he could hear discordant, off-key screeching, could see his hands tinted in blood red magic, and felt his body moving of its own volition.

The shard's magic ate at his own, drowning his energy in _rage_ , a pure and endless fury that _almost_ managed to overshadow the mind-numbing pain seeping from his chest. Douxie had never felt such uncontrollable emotion before, such malicious intent poisoning his own, and his magic _reacted_ —whether to his own emotions or to the foreign magic corrupting him, he didn't know.

A wave of force propelled him forward, out of the safety of Merlin's bubble, toward the knight. Douxie slammed into him with magic that wasn't his own, just mindless blasts of red energy, driving him off of Jim and away from his friends.

He managed to look back at them, barely able to hold his head up in the midst of the rush of pain and fury and red magic. Through the haze, he was still cut to the core at the look of horror on Archie's face, the wide eyes of Jim, Claire, and Steve. Merlin's hand was outstretched toward him, still. Douxie managed to gather himself enough to yell, "Run!"

He just hoped they did. He couldn't fight it anymore. Douxie gave himself over to the rage, to the foreign magic, to the discordant screeching in his ears. Once his magic was done fighting with it, there'd be nothing left of him. But until then, he used his magic's natural reaction to the foreign shard to attack the knight, over and over again, heedless of its efficacy or the spells themselves. He let go of the tenuous hold he had on his thoughts, and drifted into the pain.

///

Merlin could _feel_ the radiating waves of warped power coming from his apprentice, and some deep sentiment within him urged that he run after him, grab the boy and wield every piece of magical knowledge which he possessed to right this terrible taint.

The red magic swirling around the boy was so _wrong_ , deeply and fundamentally corrupt, especially when compared to Douxie's usual vibrant blue. It was antithetical to the nature Merlin knew so well, tainted and terrible, so unnatural… And the pain he could tell his apprentice was in, the frantic, desperate magic which he used to blast at the knight, was a cry for help. A master was supposed to help their apprentice, was supposed to take care of advanced magic and keep their apprentice safe from the dark forces in the world. That deep sentiment in his chest was like a physical pain—guilt, fear, protectiveness swirled together. Merlin had to swallow a yell, as if yelling after his apprentice would bring him back, would turn back time.

But Merlin didn't need to look to know Nari stood behind him, and without giving that foolish sentiment time to protest, reached out and grabbed Archie, as the dragon familiar yelled after his magician and tried to fly after him. "Douxie!" The cry was echoed by Claire, who had been blasted out of the fight by Douxie's magic, and whom Jim now held back. But the boy paid them no heed, moving with unnatural wildness as the red magic tore through and out of him, using the foreign waves of magic to blast at the Knight. Yet Merlin knew that the fury which possessed his apprentice would fade, and Bellroc and Skrael were on their way too.

Merlin was thankful for his armor, which prevented Archie's frantic scratching from making him release his hold on the familiar. "No! Douxie!" The familiar's voice cracked, and Merlin steeled himself as he turned away.

"Young Tobias! Lead the way to HexTech."

All of the young Arcadians turned to look at him, horror in their eyes, but Merlin just gestured for Nari, and pointed forward with his staff. "We must go!"

Reluctantly at first, and then hastily, even blindly, they followed, racing into the dark, mostly quiet streets of Arcadia.

Even as they ran, Merlin could feel and hear the reverberating waves of magic from the battle which they fled. The familiar whisper of his apprentice's magic was rising to a yell, warped and twisted. No matter how far away they got, it still felt wrong, unnatural. The boy's magic was always a lively, deep rhythm, notes rising and falling as he tried new incantations, consistent and bright as he strummed familiar spells into existence; but now it was loud, discordant. No rhythm or rhyme in the red flames and blasts. Just pain and panic.

In his arms, Archie finally stilled, as Douxie's magic continued to scream its final breaths. Merlin _felt_ the moment that the last of his apprentice's strength was subdued, the voice of his magic snuffed out in the raging disharmony of the Knight's magic, but did not allow himself to stumble. Archie's claws scraped against his armor as he flinched, but the familiar was deathly silent.

They ran.

///

The race through the streets felt unnecessary at first, the sounds of magic long having faded and no malicious, skull-shaped towers floating through the sky after them, but Jim still kept sprinting. He couldn't stop himself, much as he figured the others couldn't either. A mixture of adrenaline from the battle so nearly lost, and horror at seeing their friend writhe in pain before being consumed with red magic. Maybe it was guilt that kept him running. Jim didn't know.

Claire stumbled along beside him, at first needing his arm because of the thick tears running down her cheeks, but now huddled close to him for something like comfort, though Jim didn't think he could provide any. He hated that he had needed to drag her away from Douxie, but Jim knew a hopeless battle when he saw one. They'd just have to regroup, and _then_ get Douxie back.

Jim tried not to think that there might not be any way to save Douxie, anymore. He cast a glance at Merlin, who ran just behind Toby, Archie clutched in one arm and herding Nari along with his other. Douxie had said that Merlin didn't know how to remove the shard. But Merlin _had_ to know something. They didn't go through all that stuff in the past just for Douxie to sacrifice himself, just delaying the final battle. Jim hadn't gotten to know him just in time to lose him.

Jim saw Claire look over at Merlin too, a glare lighting up her over-bright eyes. He knew she was furious; part of him was too. How could Merlin have been so quick to leave Douxie there?

But the rest of him noticed how… _small_ Merlin looked. Though his face was dispassionate, the usual unperturbed mask, Jim could see that his mind was miles away. The wizard's steps continued mechanically, keeping up with Toby easily, but his eyes were glassy. Lost. It might have been a thoughtful frown that turned his mouth as they kept running, but his shoulders were slumped, just slightly.

And while he contained Archie in his arms, the familiar clearly distraught and terribly quiet, Jim could see his hold was gentle.

He couldn't keep his fury alive as he looked at Merlin. He'd never seen that much emotion on Merlin's face before.

...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N:** I’ve been waiting for this chapter for a while now. I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it ;) (I say that through gritted teeth, I almost cried three times writing this whoops)  
> .  
> Next chapter might take a while! Sorry, but I’ve got to get through finals and then I have no clue what my schedule will be like so no promises on when it’ll be out, but I promise the next chapter will be coming. Sometime.  
> .  
> thank you all SO much for reading this!! your support means the world and its honestly the reason I'm still writing. hope you enjoyed this chapter, even if the first section was like pulling teeth to write and i still don't like it but i'm going to post it anyway!


	6. Chapter 6

They managed to evade the Arcane Order's castle. Archie wasn't much aware of that. He felt… empty. In a way he hadn't felt in so long that he'd forgotten that one could.

But when young Claire began to run back out into the streets, he tuned back in. Jim stopped her. "There was nothing we could've done," he told her, voice soft. "We'll go back for him. You know we will."

"We can't," Merlin said, apparently finding his voice again. The old wizard stood just as tall as ever, his tone short and commanding. "We must hide Nari. There's more at stake than you know."

Archie, internally numb and still reeling from the aftereffects of feeling Douxie's pain as he was consumed, shoved his way out of Merlin's arms. He had no energy to keep up the shift, and returned to his cat form. "There's _always_ more at stake than we know," Archie said, refusing to look up at Merlin. "But we wouldn't _have_ to be in the dark if we were given all the information we needed."

He knew Merlin was glaring at him, but still did not glance at him. Centuries without Douxie's master, and Arch had finally gotten enough nerve to speak his mind around him, it seemed.

"But he is right," Archie finally said, and locked eyes with the distraught young Arcadians. "We must regroup. Then we can… we will…"

"Come up with a plan to retrieve young Hisirdoux," Blinky finished for him, and Archie shared a grateful look with the troll.

Merlin rescued Palchuck from his smelly hiding place, but otherwise did not comment. "Why did Douxie say to go to Hex Tech?" Toby asked.

"It is the one other place in Arcadia steeped in magic that is _not_ Merlin's," Archie said, and looked down the street. They'd almost made it there. He just hoped Zoe was on shift tonight—he was so scrambled after the events of the night that he hardly remembered what year it was, much less which days Zoe worked front desk.

Without a word, the Trollhunter approached him, and held out his hands. For a moment, Archie was confused, but then he realized he was offering a perch. Archie was too tired to fight, and gratefully leapt into Jim's arms for the walk to HexTech. At least _his_ grip was looser than Merlin's, even if the boy was stiff and seemed unsure of his grip. It was still uncomfortable compared to the effortless, familiar way that Douxie always offered his shoulder to Archie, but it would do.

As they entered the glossy, modern HexTech building, the screen behind the front desk dinged and Arch saw two familiar figures at the desk: one of the aliens who had come to Arcadia, in his human guise, and—thank Ambrosius—Zoe, her trademark deadpan delivery of the company's slogan. She seemed unimpressed by the undoubtedly technologically advanced question that the alien— _Kwil? Kroi?_ Archie was so bad with new human names—was asking.

She didn't look over when the bell over the door rang to announce their arrival, even with their motley crew, so Archie nudged Jim til he approached the desk. "Zoe," Archie said, when they were in earshot.

She turned immediately away from the creepily human-looking head that the alien had dropped on the front desk. For just a moment, her eyebrows furrowed. Her eyes scanned the group of them, once, twice, before landing back on Archie with a silent question. He opened his mouth, tried to think of a way to say what had happened, when he hardly knew how to express it himself, but Merlin stepped forward.

"My apprentice seemed to think you would be able to hide us for a short period."

Zoe raised her eyebrow even higher. She took one look, and Archie knew she had figured out who this was—whether from the magical signature of his magic, or from Douxie's many explanations of his master, or her usual uncanny ability to guess the truth. "And what gives you the right to ask my help, Arthurian toolbag?"

"We had no other choice," Merlin replied, emotionless.

With that, Zoe turned her gaze back to Archie. Merlin's blank response seemed to have taken away some of her confidence. She'd shrunk in a little on herself, bit her lip just slightly. Archie knew her bravado—knew she had noticed who wasn't with him.

"Is Douxie…?"

"It's… kind of a long story," Jim offered, "And we're kind of in a hurry."

Toby ran over, all nerves, words running together, "Evil wizards shot down our time-traveling castle and stole Douxie!"

Claire, however, answered her unfinished question. "He's not dead! We won't let him go that easily."

Merlin lowered his head, and Zoe looked no more comforted by her words. So Archie jumped over, onto the front desk, and nudged her. "He said he's sorry. He forgot about getting burgers and hunting niffins. You know how he is."

Wordlessly, Zoe reached out and ran a soothing hand through his fur. She still looked somber. Archie didn't have it in him to comfort her. "Fine," she muttered, and opened the hidden door behind the desk. "Come on to the back, then."

"I'm not sure why you seem to think we'll be safe in a toy store," Merlin spoke to Archie, but he just ignored the wizard and followed the curious Nari inside the sleek hallway. Zoe, however, gave Merlin an unimpressed look. "Shame you have to rely on such _primitive_ magic to keep you safe, but if it was good enough for Douxie, it'll be good enough for his boss."

Toby grabbed the alien— _Krel_ , that was his name—and gave him a rapid-fire rundown of the situation, ignoring Krel's many questions and clear awe about the magic he was seeing. Behind them, the other customer of HexTech yelled something about his own techie problem, but Zoe closed the door behind them without a backwards glance.

Merlin walked down the hallway, examining the hedge wizards' work with a critical eye. It seemed to Archie that he was faking it, however, since usually any display of magic would bring Merlin's critique or at least a wry comment, but the old wizard remained silent.

She opened one of the common rooms in the back, and moved the storage boxes with a short movement of her wand. "You guys should be safe here," she said. Archie could see her hesitate in the doorway—still on shift, but clearly rattled by Douxie's absence. He once again nudged her, and tried to smile reassuringly at her. She was so young for a human. Douxie hadn't come into a lick of sense for at least his first three centuries. "We won't break anything," he promised her, "And you should probably get back to work. Plus, maybe warn your superiors about… oh, I don't know, a murderous group of unspeakably ancient wizards and their floating castle? You may want to up your protective spells."

Zoe chuckled. But then she knelt down, close enough to whisper in Archie's ear, "You get Douxie back, you hear? I want a full explanation, and a rain check on hunting niffins." Archie nodded to her, and she quickly exited, regaining her unimpressed mask and faking casual.

"Sooo…" Toby was already poking around the cabinets, and Archie immediately regretted telling her he wouldn't let them break anything. "Anything in here that can stop some ancient evil wizards? It would be nice to have a moment to catch our breath."

"If the Order has their way, we won't be breathing at all," Merlin shot back, words short and clipped. He shot Archie a look, then turned to Nari. "Nari, tell them what we're up against."

The lithe figure of the third Order member settled on the sleek couch, looking surprisingly at home in the modern room, her innate magic lending her an ease that the humans in the room clearly lacked in the midst of HexTech.

"Since the beginning, the Order has always sought to protect the balance of magic and mortal, no matter the cost. But what helped one side hurt the other, and we knew not how to approach mortals. Our actions only brought pain."

"I've spent a millennium keeping their horrors at bay." Merlin sat, heavier than usual, on one of the stools nearby. He looked ancient, in a way Archie hadn't really realized before. "But it wasn't enough."

Nari shook her head. "Bellroc and Skrael believe humanity is lost, beyond correction." She strode to the screen that made up the fourth wall of the room, summoning verdant illusions of butterflies that flew into the room, as though coming from the scene on the wall. "Now, they wish to end it all. They search for the Genesis Seals."

Archie felt his stomach fall away, and unconsciously curled up on himself. Of course they were.

Claire stepped forward. "What are the Seals?"

"Cute but deadly sea mammals, duh," Steve responded, from his perch atop one of the storage boxes. It was still floating from when Zoe had magicked it out of the way. Archie could see he was desperately trying to balance, but make it look like he'd gotten up on the box on purpose.

"That would be preferable," Archie responded. "But no. These are the oldest tale in the wizards' books. Primal seals that contain the very essence of magic."

"If the Seals are broken," Merlin finished, voice impassionate, "Then raw, uncontrolled magic shall rise upon the world, wiping it like a flood."

"Oh, come on," Krel said, voice thick with sarcasm and frustration, "Destroying the world? Again?!"

"Can't these bad guys just remodel a continent, or do something nice, for once?" Toby agreed.

Nari, however, holding one of her summoned butterflies to her chest, continued. " _All_ of the Arcane Order must be present to open the Seals. That is why I fled."

Archie examined her, the leaf-like armor and vine patterns on her skin, the ancient power in her eyes. He wouldn't have guessed she was a member of the Arcane Order, but it certainly explained where Camelot had gotten the magic energy sufficient for the time jump. While Douxie probably would've said something about her voice _sounding_ magical, or her constructs holding an orchestra or something similarly endearing and foolish, Archie examined her form. He was a shapeshifter, after all, and it was the imitation that proved to _him_ what power she held. Magical beings, imbued as they were with magical essences, made it difficult to shift into. So much energy was required to replicate their energy, their aura. Mortals were so much easier, because you could just copy their looks. But magical beings had unique essences, requiring much more concentration to emulate believably. Like a fingerprint, but something deep within their cores that fizzled with their signature.

And Archie could see how the vines and flowers encompassing her body were no mere plantlife, but rather extensions of her magic, sprung from her naturally. They weren't clothes or nearby plants attracted to her—they were a _part_ of her. She teemed with life, with raw natural power. It was one of the most unique magical essences he'd ever come across—all powerful beings were distinct, and Nari was among the most ancient, most powerful.

"I've hidden the Seals away," Merlin said, "But we must keep Bellroc and Skrael away from them and Nari, or it is the end of all things."

"But if they're after her, why do they need Douxie?" Claire asked.

"I imagine," Archie muttered, "The same reason they needed Morgana, in the Battle of Killahead. They're powerful, but need… pawns. Magical vessels to add to their strength."

Krel, having established himself behind three different computers already, offered a hand in the air. "I could search for weaknesses? HexTech has a library on magical beings that is pretty comprehensive."

"We already know we can't beat the Arcane Order," Blinky said, joining him. "But perhaps we could instead search for the source of Hisirdoux's corruption! That magic came not from the Order, but from that Knight." He peered at Krel's screens, and ordered, "Search 'Rasputin Theurgy'!"

Krel typed for a moment, then shook his head, "Nothing."

"Let me see that," Blinky demanded, ignoring his wounded arm to grab at the laptop. "Curse you, auto-correct!"

"And who even _was_ that Knight?" Toby asked. "Merlin said he had Camelot's sigil-thingy."

Nodding, Krel began typing again. Blinky continued to mutter suggestions, and if he wasn't so tired, Archie would've joined them. As it was, he settled on one of the chairs, resisting the urge to take a nap. He didn't think he'd be able to relax enough for that anyway.

But Merlin paid Blinky and the others no mind. He approached Claire, who was still glaring at the old wizard with undimmed fierceness, ever since they'd left Douxie.. "I empathize, Miss Claire, but we cannot go back to save him."

"This is our friend we're talking about!" Jim protested. " _Your_ apprentice," Claire repeated, angrily. "You want us to just forget about him? No way!"

"There's gotta be a way to get him back," Jim was almost pleading, still looking to Merlin for help. But Archie was unsurprised when Merlin stepped forward, voice harsh. "The risk is too great for a rescue! We _must_ keep Nari safe from the Order. The fate of _existence_ is at stake!"

"This is why nobody likes you, dude!" Toby responded, somewhat childishly, but Archie couldn't help but agree.

For a moment, Merlin looked like he would retort, but then he sighed. "I cannot live my life in pursuit of your 'likes'. Hisirdoux… is corrupted. I could not find a way to stop the process, nor reverse it. He is _gone_."

"Or maybe you're just too stubborn to try!" Claire's anger rose, matching Merlin's apparent indifference. Archie almost believed that Merlin was as emotionless as he looked, but there had been a flare of magic he couldn't contain when he spoke of Douxie. Merlin's impeccable control would not have lapsed for merely anyone. Archie just couldn't figure out if it was despair or anger that hid underneath Merlin's dispassionate mask.

"This argument solves nothing," Archie rose and jumped onto the table beside them, breaking their unwavering gazes. "You're both right, and you're both wrong. Stop talking at each other and start working on a solution!"

Behind him, Nari had shrunk in on herself. "My presence causes such discord. I have put you all in danger." Steve, having gotten off the floating box with Aaarrrgghh's help, knelt down to pat her on the head. "No worries, veggie lady!" Archie was pretty sure he had just been looking for an excuse to see if her antlers were real. "You are under the protection of the Knights of Arcadia—" he thumped himself on the chest "which is only me, currently."

"I will not jeopardize the mortal plane for one person," Merlin coldly glared at Archie, then at Claire.

"It's what he'd do for _you_ ," Archie responded, anger mounting. "For any of us."

"And what did that get him?" Merlin shot back.

For a moment, Archie flinched, and Merlin seemed to realize what he had said.

"He's _not dead_ ," Archie almost snarled back, after a moment, and Merlin sighed again, turning away. "My duty remains the same as it has always been. The world must be protected."

"But what if we could get him back _without_ jeopardizing the Seals things or Nari?" Jim stepped forward.

"How?" Claire eagerly demanded, and Merlin glanced up at him, just for a moment.

"Well," Jim rubbed a hand through his hair. "Did Douxie ever get around to that bluffing lesson he promised you?"

"Yes, yes," Merlin interrupted, before he could explain. "I'm sure you will come up with a suitably foolish and risky scheme. But even if Hisirdoux is alive… even if his body remains, his magic, his _essence_ is corrupted by that magic. There's no guarantee there's anything left of _him_ to retrieve."

Merlin turned away from them. However, Nari came up beside him, and placed a hand on his armor. "If he lives, I can find him. Let me help."

The Master Wizard looked down at her, his movement unnaturally slow. After a moment, he nodded.

Nari stepped forward as well, addressing the still-anxious faces. "I sense all living souls, small and great. I can sense whether he remains."

Claire gave her an eager nod, and Jim came up beside his girlfriend with a comforting grin. Nari stepped away from them for a moment, her deep eyes reflecting the purple light of HexTech's lamps. After a moment, a swell of green magic spread out from where her feet touched the ground. And then she began to float.

Her magic was a purer color than Merlin's—it felt alive, and natural, formed not with insubstantial wisps or manufactured runes but with the shapes of vines and roots. At first, it was a small circle around her—lighting up the room even in its small size, but then the roots spread out, further and further, racing to the walls, and beyond, and Archie could feel their reach spanning further. Energy pulsed through them, a low hum that was as far from threatening as you could get.

Nari closed her eyes, hands outstretched, her eyebrows furrowed. She still stood before them, but Archie could tell that her power had stretched, expanded, and when she spoke, her voice was no louder than usual, but it echoed through the room like as though from a great distance.

"My roots extend across the Earth." Her eyes flicked open, their unnatural golden hue seeming brighter in the light of her green magic. And then there was a massive shrinking of her presence, and the roots disappeared as she settled effortlessly on the ground again.

"But I cannot find the soul of your friend."

Her voice was low, almost apologetic.

"So there's nothing left of Doux?" Steve's voice was perhaps the most somber Archie had ever heard it.

Archie felt something inside him shrivel at the thought. But Claire broke away from Jim's hand, and shook her head. "I won't accept that."

Merlin merely sat down heavily on one of the stools, placing his staff beside him. "You heard Nari," he said. "Even I don't know magic that could hide someone from her power on the Earth."

"But what if he's not here?" Jim stepped forward. "Precisely, young trollhunter," Merlin said, his voice heavy, but Jim shook his head. "No, I meant…" He struggled with words for a second, then turned to Claire. "Isn't the Shadow Realm technically not on this world? There's plenty of magic out there."

Claire's eyes lit up. "You're right! Maybe he's there!"

"We have no way of knowing that for sure," Blinky stepped forward. "You should not venture somewhere so dark without knowing if he awaits you on the other side. Besides, Morgana may be vanquished, but her power lingers on. If there's one thing I know about the Shadow Realm, it is that echoes remain far longer there than here."

Claire set her jaw at the thought, but didn't disregard his words. Instead, she turned to Archie. "Can't you still feel him, with your familiar bond?"

Unconsciously, Archie tensed. There had been so much _pain_ , too much to focus through, when Douxie had sacrificed himself. Every attempt Archie had made to reach out to him was lost in that maelstrom of magic and pain, and the corrupting influence of the Knight had leaked through into their familiar bond. He hadn't thought that Douxie could feel him at all.

And then, while they were running, he'd _felt_ the magic finally overtake his familiar, and the pure agony, like fire, had grown to such a pitch that Archie nearly lost himself to it too. The gaping silence that had followed was indescribably worse, however.

Since then, Archie had tried not to poke at the bond. He could shut himself off from it, when needed. After so long linked with Douxie, their magical connection was background noise most of the time, and he could put his focus elsewhere. He hadn't reached back for it, hadn't tried to sense his familiar or speak to him, since that overwhelming firestorm. He was too scared that it would be _gone_. Again.

But he felt the eyes of the others in the room, as they seemed to hold their breath for his answer. So Archie took a deep breath, and closed his eyes.

When Douxie was in the room with him, their bond was a subtle, constant feedback. An undercurrent of the wizard's excitement, nerves, contentment, constantly singing in the back of Archie's head. When they split up for whatever reason, that feeling was subdued, but if he focused on it, no matter the distance, Archie could get the broad strokes of Douxie's emotion, could pluck at their magical link like a string. Douxie could respond, could project back a reassurance. When he had fallen through the time rift, Archie's mind had been _empty_ —unnaturally quiet, blank. Even less noticeable than when Douxie slept. But he'd still _known_ Douxie was on the other side, somewhere--or in this case, some"when".

He centered his mind, and plucked at their link.

For a moment, he feared a return of the pain that had shrieked at him previously. But instead, there was… confusion? An undercurrent of pain and rage so small and far away that he almost couldn't hear it. The bond remained, and Douxie was on the other end of it—closer than when he was lost in time, but muffled and sluggish. There was no reply.

But Archie didn't need a reply. His eyes snapped open, and he let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd held. "He's still there," Archie said, and one of the tight knots of tension in his chest loosened. Claire and Jim exchanged triumphant looks, and Steve whooped, slapping Toby on the back in excitement.

"That settles it!" Claire set her shoulders back, and Archie could see the mixture of determination and worry in her eyes. "Doesn't matter that dark magic took Douxie. I'll save him with my own." She glared directly at Merlin for a moment. "After all, _he_ taught me how to use it."

"And I'm going with you," Archie walked over to her. "I'm sure you all enjoyed your galivant through the past, but I will not be left behind again."

He stiffened as Merlin rose. Archie expected an acerbic comment about their chances, maybe a condescending word about how best to navigate. Part of him wanted Merlin to say he would join too, if only to prove that he'd been replaced with a very convincing shapeshifter sometime in the past centuries and Archie could finally uncover him as a fake Merlin.

But instead, Merlin knelt down beside Archie, and locked eyes with him. "You have looked out for him this far, Archibald. If anyone can get him back, you can." Then, abruptly, he turned and walked for the door.

"You're not going to stick around and find out if we succeed?" Jim called after him.

"I must seek the advice of an old friend," Merlin said. Maybe it was Archie's imagination, but the Master Wizard seemed less weighed down than when he'd entered. "Regardless of your success, we need to protect the Seals. And I know precisely who to ask."

Archie narrowed his eyes at the wizard's back. Merlin had few confidants, if any, and most of his usual experts on various magic folklore and specialties had died or been chased into hiding centuries previously. And someone specifically knowledgeable about the Seals…

"You better not be visiting who I think you're visiting!" Archie yelled after him, as Merlin left the room.

Jim and the others turned to look at him. Archie shook his head. "Let's just say that Merlin's 'friends' are either dangerous magical creatures like Nimue, or unspeakably fiendish and powerful beings like…" he was suddenly glad Douxie wasn't there to hear the reticence in Archie's voice to say his name, "Like Charlemagne the Devourer."

Blinky looked positively enraptured by the idea, while the rest of the group merely shook their heads in puzzlement. "You mean, _The_ Charlemagne the Devourer? Who baked alive those who stole his treasure into the most delicious blood pie?" Archie sighed. "You forgot the burning and singeing part, but yes."

Toby and Steve shuddered as Blinky clapped his four hands together in delight at the idea.

"You ready, Arch?"

He looked up at Claire. She was young, but her magical essence was bright, distinctive. Somehow brighter than almost any other shadow magic user he'd ever come across—both in pure power, and in kindness. "I suppose it was only a matter of time that I ventured into a dangerous plane of existence to protect him. Keeping him from getting hit over the head with his own broom would've been too boring for this many centuries."

Behind them, Steve gave them a weak thumbs-up. "Good luck?"

Jim made to stand next to Claire, his own face lighting up in a grin, but Claire shook her head. "You better stay here, hero," she smiled softly at him. "Somebody's gotta keep an eye on Nari, and make sure Steve doesn't decapitate anyone with his new axe."

"I'm still not sure why we let him keep that," Jim muttered. But though he looked crestfallen, after a second, he nodded back. "We'll keep looking for a way to hold off the Arcane Order, or take down that Knight. You get back here as fast as you can, okay?"

Claire grinned at him, some mixture of sadness still present in her eyes. Then she locked eyes with Archie, and extended a hand. A swirling dark portal sprang into existence before them, and Archie stared into the blackness, hoping to see something. But the magic was just dark, inscrutable.

Archie shuddered internally. _Not_ diving headfirst into potentially dangerous situations was the main admonition he ever gave Douxie. And here _he_ was, venturing into the Shadow Realm like it was the most natural thing in the world. Maybe Douxie's recklessness was rubbing off on him. Or maybe he'd finally lost it and needed to retire.

But either way… Archie glanced one more time around the room, at Nari's curious, optimistic face, at Jim's encouraging smile, and Claire's determined glare. He steeled himself and leapt into the shadow portal.

Either way, it would be worth it, if it got them any closer to getting Douxie back.

...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> **A/N:** heeyyy friends welcome to REALLY AU territory, where Lali re-figures the timeline and the final battle for MAXIMUM ANGST AND HURT/COMFORT—oh, yes, I promise comfort is coming! There will be a soft landing! Eventually!
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> Also I’m really sorry I did not mean to leave you with that dramatic chapter as a cliffhanger, it was unintentional I promise, but that was where my pre-written fic ran out and I had a rough holiday season so this took 5ever but listen,,, y’all your comments have been keeping me going and I’m literally crying, y’all are too nice ahhhh thanks so muchhhhhh
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> Sorry to bring Zoe in and then promptly ignore her again but I don’t really want to write her when she’s had so little canon? Like I’m stoked for her to (hopefully) have a role in the movie but she had such a small part in wizards that I don’t know what to do with her.
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> Also, I know that this chapter was mostly talking? But I was trying to get things set up and figure out the timeline for how I wanted it to end and this just... worked? Hope you still enjoy.
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> We’re looking at three(????) more chapters probably. But it might stretch to four. We shall see. I also cannot promise when the next chapter will be, since i'm back at school and v busy. But I promise I'm going to finish the fic!
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> I’m also really hoping y’all enjoy the ending I came up with! Remember it’s hurt/comfort so there WILL be a happy ending. also this is where I pick and choose the parts of canon I like best. soooo... expect some canon, some new stuff. I'm experimenting.


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